Patent Application
20080069631
The accompanying drawings are not intended to be drawn to scale. In the drawings, each identical or nearly identical component that is illustrated in various figures typically is represented by a like numeral. For purposes of clarity, not every component may be labeled in every drawing, nor is every component of each embodiment of the invention shown where illustration is not necessary to allow those of ordinary skill in the art to understand the invention. In the drawings:
This invention is not limited in its structure or application to the details of construction and the arrangement of components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of being embodied in other embodiments and of being practiced or of being carried out in various ways. Also, the phraseology and terminology used herein is for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting. The use of “including,” “comprising,” or “having,” “containing”, “involving”, and variations thereof herein, are meant to encompass the items listed thereafter as well as, optionally, additional items.
Certain embodiments of the invention provide a furniture system that permits simplified assembly, disassembly, and/or reassembly of a piece of furniture, compared with many typical conventional furniture systems. Additionally, in some embodiments, a furniture system is provided which allows for upward and/or sideward expansion of an existing furniture configuration without requiring any disassembly of the existing piece of furniture. In certain embodiments, an inventive furniture connector having furniture-engaging portions is used to interconnect furniture members provided according to the invention. For purposes herein, a “furniture member” comprises a shelf, wall, board, rail, door, leg, post, structural member, step, drawer, and any other furniture component that comprises a component of the useful structure of a piece of furniture or a furniture assembly, other than a furniture connector, a connecting element, or a fastening element, as those terms are used herein. For purposes herein, “interconnect” means to connect at least two elements, such as furniture members, whether they are directly connected or connected via a third, or more, intervening elements. A connection or interconnection does not necessarily require a fixed relation between the elements, as the elements may in certain embodiments be slidingly, pivotally, or rotatably interconnected.
In one embodiment, a furniture connector of the invention extends along a substantial length of the connecting sides at least two furniture members when the furniture members are interconnected with the furniture connector. For purposes herein, a “furniture member connecting side” is a side, an edge, or an area near a side or edge of a furniture member that is adapted to be interconnected with another furniture member. In certain embodiments, furniture member connecting sides are adapted to connect to furniture-engaging portions of a furniture connector as part of the interconnection between two furniture members.
In certain embodiments of a furniture member connection system, a furniture member has at least one groove in at least one of its connecting sides. At least one of such grooves may extend along the lengthwise direction of at least a portion of a connecting side, sometimes along essentially the entire length of such connecting side. In some such embodiments, the groove(s) may be adapted to receive and, in certain embodiments mate with, a furniture-engaging portion of a furniture connector. The use of grooves and furniture-engaging portions may provide a strong connection which more evenly distributes interconnection forces along the length of furniture members as compared to many conventional furniture assembly schemes. The furniture-engaging portion or a portion thereof may be configured as a rail, for example, a rectangular rail, or may be any other suitable structure that is insertable into the groove and adapted to enable secure fastening of the furniture member to the furniture-engaging portion. For certain embodiments of a furniture connector that have at least two furniture-engaging portions, two furniture members can be interconnected by inserting each furniture-engaging portion of the furniture connector into a groove of each of the furniture members, and fastening the furniture members to the furniture-engaging portions.
In certain embodiments, the furniture-engaging portion (rail or otherwise) that is insertable into the furniture member groove is configured to include one or more elongated connecting elements, such as bolts or other threaded connectors, attached to it. Each elongated connecting element, in turn, may be configured to be engageable with a fastening element associated with a furniture member so as to connect the furniture member to the furniture-engaging portion of the furniture connector. The furniture-engaging portion may include a recess such as a hole for insertion and attachment of at least a portion of (e.g. a threaded portion) the elongated connecting element. For example, the furniture-engaging portion may have a hole with internal threads to accept a bolt which is threaded at one end. In certain embodiments, with the furniture-engaging portion of a connector placed within a groove of the furniture member, and a connecting element extending into the furniture member through a passage in the base or wall of the groove, a fastening element which is disposed in a hole in the furniture member is operated upon to engage the connecting element to secure the furniture member to the furniture connector.
In some embodiments, the fastening of the furniture-engaging portions of the connectors to the furniture members is reversible. That is to say, the furniture-engaging portions of the connectors may be unfastened and removed from the grooves in the furniture members without changing the structure or damaging the connector or the furniture members so much as to cause them to be less useful or to substantially decrease their useful lifespan. By permitting removal of the connectors, certain groups of assembled furniture members provided according to certain embodiments of the invention can be disassembled from one selected configuration and, optionally, reassembled into a different configuration.
According to one aspect of certain embodiments of the invention, the assembly and/or the disassembly of furniture may be simplified by using certain embodiments of the connectors and furniture members described herein. The assembly of furniture in some embodiments may require very few tools, in some cases only a screwdriver. In other embodiments, no tools are required for assembly or disassembly, i.e. only the hands of an assembler. For example, a cam lock or other fastening element may be grooved for finger operation.
According to another aspect of certain embodiments of the invention, the interchangeability of the furniture members and/or the versatility of embodiments of the connector may simplify assembly and may permit furniture configuration changes. For example, a shelving unit may be assembled in one of a number of configurations and later disassembled and reassembled in a different configuration. In some embodiments, the same connector can interconnect two, three, or four or more furniture members. In one example, a connector is capable of interconnecting up to four furniture members, but when interconnecting fewer than four furniture members, the unused furniture-engaging portions do not protrude unacceptably from the piece of furniture. By adding or subtracting furniture members, a user can change the configuration of the furniture assembly. A kit of parts may be provided that includes interchangeable furniture members, furniture connectors, connecting elements, fastening elements and instructions. The instructions may direct a user to assemble the furniture connectors and furniture members into a first configuration. The instructions also may direct the user to disassemble the first configuration and assemble the furniture connectors and furniture members into a second, a third, etc. configuration, depending on the embodiment.
Using various connectors of the invention that can connect two, three, or four or more furniture members also may allow a user to expand a piece of furniture by adding new furniture members to the side, top, bottom, front, and/or back of a piece of furniture; in some embodiments without exchanging connectors. In certain embodiments, extensions may be added to furniture assemblies in this manner without the creation of double walls. For example, one side of a shelving unit may have a four-foot vertical wall that is made up of four one-foot square boards which are attached end-to-end by three furniture connectors, and additionally have a furniture connector at the top of the highest board and a furniture connector at the bottom of the lowest board. A user may expand the shelving unit on such side by attaching bolts to the outward-facing furniture-engaging portions of the five furniture connectors and connecting two horizontal boards to these furniture-engaging portions of the connectors. If desired, vertical boards may be added to the outer side of the assembly to complete the addition of a new shelf.
In another aspect of certain embodiments of the invention, the use of furniture connectors that extend lengthwise along connecting sides of furniture members can provide stronger connections between furniture members than achieved using typical connection means utilized for modular furniture. In some embodiments, the furniture connectors can extend along essentially the entire length or a major portion of the length of the connecting side of a furniture member. In certain embodiments the furniture connectors do not extend along the entire length of the connecting side, but the connector length is greater than the connector width. As compared to typical conventional point connection furniture assembly systems, such connections may help distribute loads applied to the furniture connectors and furniture members over a greater area to increase load-carrying capacity of assembled furniture and/or reduce the chance of damage or breakage.
In another aspect of certain embodiments of the invention, furniture members may be provided which include adapters that are configured to allow connection of door hinges, sliding doors, shelving, feet, wheels, handles, or other suitable items or furniture members.
According to another aspect of certain embodiments of the invention, fastening elements used to secure the furniture connectors to the furniture members can be hidden from exterior view in an assembled piece of furniture. In some embodiments, the fastening elements are employed on interior portions of the furniture members, leaving the exterior with clean lines and an aesthetic appeal. In these or other embodiments, the furniture connectors and/or fastening elements may be made in various colors and/or textures that can be selected to be complementary to and/or visually blend in with the colors and/or textures of the furniture members, and in certain configurations, they may be visible in the completed furniture assembly to render a desired visual effect.
In some embodiments, a plurality of connecting elements 3 may be provided on a given furniture-engaging portion at discrete locations along the length of the furniture-engaging portion. In some embodiments, numerous holes for attachment of connecting elements 3 may be provided, but only a subset of the holes may be used in certain configurations depending on the strength of connection desired between the furniture connector and the furniture member(s).
In some embodiments, connecting element 3 is a bolt and fastening element 24 is a cam lock, each may be, for example, identical or similar to the bolts and cam locks described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,886,326 to Kuzyyk. With reference to
In alternative embodiments (not shown), the connecting elements may be attached to the furniture connector in a manner other than with a threaded portion. For example, the connecting elements may be pivotally or otherwise movably attached to the furniture connector such that the connecting elements are attached at the time or place of manufacture of the furniture connection, yet do not protrude significantly from the furniture connector during transport. At the time of assembly, the connecting elements may be positioned to extend essentially radially outwardly from the furniture connector, and engaged with fastening elements as described above.
In still another alternative embodiment (not shown), the connecting element and fastening element arrangement may be reversed such that a connecting element is initially attached to the furniture member within a groove of the furniture member, and a passage for the connecting element is present in the furniture-engaging portion of the connector. In this embodiment, a fastening element may be disposed within the furniture connector to attach the connecting element to the furniture connector, thus securing the furniture member and the furniture connector together.
Returning to the embodiments of
In some embodiments, such as the one shown in
Although furniture connector 2 in
The furniture members shown in this embodiment include connecting sides 8 that are beveled. The beveled connecting sides allow connecting sides 8 to meet in a symmetrical arrangement while maintaining intimate contact between faces 9 of connecting sides 8. In other embodiments, connecting sides 8 need not be beveled, nor, in all embodiments, are faces 9 of connecting sides 8 required to intimately contact one another as illustrated.
In this embodiment, furniture member 4′″ has a connecting side with an angled face portion 9 which forms an interior angle θ with an adjacent face 12 of the furniture member 4′″ of about 135°. A similarly angled face portion 10 is present opposite to face portion 9. Each furniture member 4, 4″, and 4′″ has similar interior angles, and as such, at each of the regions of intersections of the members, the faces of the connecting sides are in intimate contact, thereby eliminating gaps or open spaces. In other embodiments, connecting sides may have one or more faces arranged at larger angles with respect to adjacent faces of the furniture member than illustrated, which may allow for a greater number of furniture members to be connected by a furniture connector, while still permitting intimate contact of connecting side faces. In still other embodiments, smaller angles than illustrated may be used which could be selected to allow up to three (about 120°) or only two (about 90°—i.e., connecting face portions essentially coplanar to each other and essentially normal to the adjacent faces of the furniture member) to be connected by one furniture connector, while permitting intimate contact between the faces. As mentioned immediately above, in certain embodiments, angled portion 9 may form an essentially 90° interior angle with adjacent face 12 and angled portion 10 may form an essentially 90° interior angle with its adjacent face to provide a squared-off connecting edge. In still further embodiments, a single angled portion may extend across the entire thickness of the furniture member. The furniture members and connectors may be constructed such that the furniture members become interconnected relative to one another at angles α other than about 90° as illustrated.
As can be seen in
According to an alternative embodiment of a furniture system, grooves may be present in the furniture connector, and furniture connector-engaging portions may be disposed on the furniture members. For example, as shown in
Each furniture member shown in
A furniture assembly including another alternative embodiment of a furniture connector 2 is shown in
In this embodiment, the grooves formed in furniture members have two walls 42, 44 forming an essentially v-shape rather than having two essentially parallel walls and an essentially perpendicular base as in the embodiment shown in
Two of the furniture members are shown in cross-section in
While
Adhesive may be used, if desired, to make certain connections permanent, for example, by including adhesive material in groove 7 before inserting a furniture-engaging portion of a furniture connector in the groove and securing it with a fastening element. An adhesive connection as formed directly between furniture members or as used to secure an interconnection between two furniture members via connection of each furniture member to a furniture connector, wherein all of the connections are secured solely by the use of adhesive, however, is not considered to be use of a “connecting element” or “fastening element” as those terms are used herein. In some embodiments, however, a first furniture-engaging portion may be reversibly fastened to a furniture member via a fastening element of the invention, and a second furniture-engaging portion may be permanently attached with the addition of adhesive.
The reversibility of connections, provided according to certain embodiments of the invention, can permit improved versatility when adding extensions to furniture assemblies. One example of this versatility is shown in the embodiment of
The ability to add or subtract furniture members from furniture assemblies enabled via use of inventive furniture connectors and furniture members according to certain embodiments of the invention, also may allow for versatility in assembling/reassembling/expanding furniture assemblies in different configurations. For example, as shown in
In some embodiments, more than one face of various furniture members may be presentable as an exterior face of a furniture assembly. In combination with various connection systems disclosed herein, such furniture members may allow users to choose whether fastening elements will be visible in the assembled furniture assembly or not, or may allow users to decide which color or surface texture will be visible on the exterior of the furniture assembly.
“Instructions” can and often do define a component of promotion, and typically involve written instructions on or associated with packaging of kits or components of the invention. Instructions also can include any oral or electronic instructions provided in any manner. The “kit” typically, and preferably, defines a package including both any one or a combination of the components of the invention and the instructions, but can also include the components of the invention and instructions of any form that are provided in connection with the components in a manner such that a purchaser or user of the components will clearly recognize that the instructions are to be associated with the specific components.
As discussed above, even though furniture members can be securely interconnected to one another using embodiments of the furniture connectors disclosed herein, in certain embodiments the connection is reversible so that the furniture members can be disconnected and furniture assemblies can be disassembled, without difficulty and without adversely altering the structure of the furniture members and furniture connectors. For example, in the embodiment of
While several embodiments of the invention have been described and illustrated herein, those of ordinary skill in the art will readily envision a variety of other means and structures for performing the functions and/or obtaining the results or advantages described herein, and each of such variations, modifications and improvements is deemed to be within the scope of the present invention. More generally, those skilled in the art would readily appreciate that all parameters, dimensions, materials, and configurations described herein are meant to be exemplary and that actual parameters, dimensions, materials, and configurations will depend upon specific applications for which the teachings of the present invention are used. Those skilled in the art will recognize, or be able to ascertain using no more than routine experimentation, many equivalents to the specific embodiments of the invention described herein. It is, therefore, to be understood that the foregoing embodiments are presented by way of example only and that, within the scope of the appended claims and equivalents thereto, the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described. The present invention is directed to each individual feature, system, material and/or method described herein. In addition, any combination of two or more such features, systems, materials and/or methods, provided that such features, systems, materials and/or methods are not mutually inconsistent, is included within the scope of the present invention. In the claims (as well as in the specification above), all transitional phrases or phrases of inclusion, such as “comprising,” “including,” “carrying,” “having,” “containing,” “composed of,” “made of,” “formed of,” “involving” and the like shall be interpreted to be open-ended, i.e. to mean “including but not limited to” and, therefore, encompassing the items listed thereafter and equivalents thereof as well as additional items. Only the transitional phrases or phrases of inclusion “consisting of” and “consisting essentially of” are to be interpreted as closed or semi-closed phrases, respectively.
