Patent Application
20240218660
The present invention relates to a panel construction, such as a modular panel construction for creating a workspace. Modular panels are well known for use in defining workspaces. These panels generally have front and rear panel surfaces that are provided with an aesthetically pleasing finish, and side edges that can be connected to similar panels in an in-line or corner configuration to define one or more adjacent private or semi-private workspaces. In many cases, these panels have an interior structural frame that is covered on each side by a decorative panel cover. Other panels have a wood core, such as solid wood or wood fiber, and may be provided with decorative veneer or laminate layers on the front and rear surfaces.
It is also common to attach accessories to panels with interior frames. These interior frames can be formed with slots, hooks, and channels for the insertion and attachment of screens, shelves, worksurfaces and the like. One relatively well known accessory for attaching to an interior frame is a glass panel extending upwardly from the top rail of the frame. These glass panels provide a visually pleasing top portion of the workspace. They can be frosted or tinted to provide a degree of privacy while still allowing light into the workspace. The top rail of the frame can be formed with clips or a channel for receiving a portion of the glass panel in an upright position at the top of the panel.
It can be more difficult to attach accessories to panels with a wood core or other panels that do not have a structure interior frame. In particular, it can be difficult to attach accessories such as glass panels to the top of a wood core because it requires drilling or cutting into the core, which can damage the structural integrity of the core itself. Attempts have been made to attach clips to the upper edge of the core, but these are generally unsightly. Other attempts have been made to cut a channel in the upper edge of the core, such that the glass can be inset into the channel, but these attempts have created difficulty in that the channel cannot be extended to the side edges of the core without impacting the structural integrity. As a result, the glass does not extend to the side edges—leaving unsightly gaps between the glass panels of adjacent modular panels. Manufacturers continue to seek cost effective methods for providing accessories on solid core panels.
The present invention provides a panel construction with a glass panel that is inset into the top edge of a core in such a way as to minimize manufacturing costs while creating a favorable aesthetic by reducing the gap between the glass panel and adjacent panels.
In one embodiment, the panel construction includes a core having first and second opposing surfaces, top and bottom edges, and first and second side edges. A surface material covers the first edge surface and extends to the top edge. A side edge material covers the first side edge and extends to the top edge. A top edge material covers the top edge and extends to the first side edge. A glass support notch is cut through the top edge material and into the top edge of the core. The notch is cut such that it extends through the first side edge of the core, and the side edge material on the first side edge covers the glass support notch on the first side edge. A channel rail is inserted into the glass support notch, and a glass panel is inserted into the channel rail between the sidewalls of the channel, with a portion of the glass panel extending above the top edge material.
In one embodiment, the core is formed from a wood fiber material, the top edge material is a plastic edge band material, and the surface material is a decorative laminate. The glass support notch may also extend through second side edge, with the side edge material on the second side edge covering the glass support notch on the second side edge. The support notch may extend continuously from the first side edge to the second side edge at a uniform depths.
The channel rail may be a U-shaped metal channel that is formed from a single material and is inserted into the notch between the sidewalls of the notch with the floor of the channel positioned on the floor of the notch, and a plurality of retention clips may be inserted into the channel rail between the channel rail sidewalls, with each of the clips including a pair of clip arms, and with the glass panel inserted between the clip arms and held in place by the clip arms.
The glass panel includes a bottom edge, a top edge, and first and second side edges. In one embodiment, the side edge material includes an inner surface and an outer surface, and the first side edge of the glass panel faces and is adjacent to the inner surface of the side edge material. And in one embodiment, a second one of the panel constructions is positioned adjacent to the panel construction, with the side edge material defining a thickness, and wherein the first side edge of the glass panel of the panel construction is spaced from the second panel construction by the thickness of the first side edge material. Such a construction may reduce the gap between the glass panel of the panel construction and the glass panel of the second panel construction.
In one embodiment, the invention includes a method for manufacturing a panel construction with inset glass. The method includes the steps of: providing a core having first and second opposing surfaces, a top edge, a bottom edge, and first and second side edges; providing a first surface material on the first surface, including extending the first surface material to the top edge of the first surface; providing a top edge material on the top edge; cutting a glass panel support notch in the top edge by cutting through the top edge material, the glass panel support notch extending through the first side edge of the core and forming a first notch opening in the first side edge of the core; providing a first side edge material on the first side edge of the core, the first side edge material covering the first notch opening; inserting a channel rail into the glass panel support notch, the channel rail including a floor and a pair of upwardly extending sidewalls; and inserting a glass panel into the channel rail between the sidewalls of the channel rail, the glass panel including a bottom panel edge positioned within the channel rail and below the top edge of the core, the glass panel including a top edge opposite the bottom edge, the top edge of the glass panel extending outwardly beyond the top edge of the core. The glass panel may include a first side edge that is adjacent to and directly faces the first side edge material.
The method may include the step of inserting a plurality of retention clips into the channel rail between the sidewalls, each of the retention clips having a pair of clip arms. The glass panel may be inserted between the clip arms of the retention clips. The first side edge material may be provided after the cutting of the glass panel support notch.
In one embodiment, a second one of the panel constructions is provided in an in-line arrangement with the panel construction, wherein the first side edge material of the second panel construction directly faces the first side edge material of the panel construction. The first side edge material of the panel construction may abut the first side edge material of the second panel construction.
In another embodiment, a second one of the panel constructions is provided in an L-shaped arrangement with the panel construction, wherein the first side edge material of the panel construction directly faces the first surface material of the second panel construction. The first side edge material of the panel construction may abut the first surface material of the second panel construction.
These and other objects, advantages, and features of the invention will be more fully understood and appreciated by reference to the description of the current embodiments and the drawings.
Before the embodiments of the invention are explained in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the details of operation or to the details of construction and the arrangement of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention may be implemented in various other embodiments and may be practiced or may be carried out in alternative ways not expressly disclosed herein. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology used herein are for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting. The use of “including” and “comprising” and variations thereof is meant to encompass the items listed thereafter and equivalents thereof as well as additional items and equivalents thereof. Further, enumeration may be used in the description of various embodiments. Unless otherwise expressly stated, the use of enumeration should not be construed as limiting the invention to any specific order or number of components. Nor should the use of enumeration be construed as excluding from the scope of the invention any additional steps or components that might be combined with or into the enumerated steps or components.
A panel construction according to one embodiment of the present invention is shown in
In one embodiment, the core 12 includes a front surface 30, a rear surface 32 opposite the front surface 30, a bottom edge 34, a top edge 36, and left and right side edges 38, 40. The core 12 may have a variety of shapes, and in the illustrated embodiment has the shape of a rectangular upright panel wherein the front 30 and rear 32 surfaces form major surfaces of the core 12 and the bottom 34, top 36, and side edges 38, 40 form relatively narrow edges of the core 12. The thickness and length of these edges, and the overall size of the core 12, may be varied depending on the application, and are generally sized to form an office privacy panel. The core 12 may be made from a variety of materials, and is generally formed from a wood material such as pressed wood fibers. For example, the core 12 may be formed from a wood based board such as a medium density fiberboard (MDF) or a high density fiberboard (HDF) which include wood particles or fibers pressed together with an adhesive to take the shape of a solid panel. In another embodiment, the core 12 may be formed from solid wood, an alternative wood product, or an alternative material such as plastic.
The surface covering materials 14, 16 generally cover the front 30 and rear 32 surfaces of the core 12. In the illustrated embodiment, the surface covering materials are a thin layer that is adhered or otherwise attached to the core 12. The surface covering materials 14, 16 be formed from a wood veneer, or a laminate, such as an HPL (High Pressure Laminate) and may have a top layer consisting of one or more prints and/or one or more layers of lacquer, such as primers, decorative paint layers, transparent top layers, a wood grain appearance and the like. In the illustrated embodiment, these materials 14, 16 extend to bottom 34, top 36, and side edges 38, 40 to substantially cover all of the front 30 and rear 32 surfaces. In another embodiment, these layers may cover only a portion of the front 30 and rear 32 surfaces.
The top 18, bottom 20, and side 22, 24 edge materials may form layers that cover the bottom 34, top 36, and side 38, 40 edges of the core 12. These layers may be adhered or otherwise attached to the core 12. In one embodiment, these edge materials 18, 20, 22 and 24 are all formed of the same material, such as an ABS strip (synthetic material strip of acrylonitrile butadiene styrene), another type of plastic strip, or a laminate. In another embodiment, the side edge materials may be formed of other materials, such as a thin wood layer, or another thin layer of material that can protect the core 12. These side edge layers are generally formed of a damage resistant material. They may match the appearance of the front 14 and rear 16 surface materials, or they may be different from the surface materials. In the illustrated embodiment, each of the edge materials 18, 20, 22 and 24 are sized—at least initially—to cover substantially all of their respective edges 34, 36, 38, 40.
Referring to
According to one embodiment, the glass panel support notch 26 is formed by cutting through the top edge material 18. As noted in more detail below, this cut may be formed by a variety of cutting methods. After cutting, the top edge material 18 includes a first top edge portion 64 on a first side of the notch 26 and a second top edge portion 66 on the opposite side of the notch 26. In one embodiment, the notch 26 is cut such that the first 64 and second 66 top edge portions are the same size, although in one embodiment the notch 26 may be closer to the front 30 or rear 32 surface of the core 12, such that one of the top edge portions 64, 66 is wider than the other.
In one embodiment, the panel construction includes a channel support rail 70. The channel support rail 70 may be a structural support rail that is positioned within the notch 26 to provide structural support for the glass panel 28. Referring to
The channel support rail 70 is inserted into the glass panel support notch 26 and attached within the notch 26. In one embodiment, the channel support rail 70 is sized to fit closely within the notch 26, such that the bottom wall 72 sits on the floor 50 of the notch 26, and the exterior surfaces 84 of the sidewalls 74, 76 are adjacent to, and may in some applications abut, the walls of the notch 52, 54. The length of the channel support rail 70 between the longitudinal ends 71, 73 may be sized to correspond closely to the length of the core 12, such that the ends 71, 73 are each adjacent to one of the side edges 38, 40 of the core 12. In one embodiment, the channel support rail 70 may be attached to the core 12 within the notch 26 by the fastener(s) 91 by inserting the fastener(s) through the holes 88 and into the core 12. In an alternative embodiment, the channel support rail 70 may be formed of a different material, or combination of materials, including a plastic or another metal, or another generally rigid material. In another embodiment, the channel rail 70 may have a different cross-sectional shape, or may include two separate pieces inserted into the notch 26 and forming the sidewalls 74, 76.
The panel construction may additionally include one or more retainer clips 90 for assisting in the retention of the glass panel 28. With reference to
The glass panel 28 is inserted into the glass panel support notch 26, the channel rail 70 and the clips 90 to inset a portion of the glass panel 26 and form the panel construction 10. In one embodiment, the glass panel 28 is a generally conventional glass panel 28 having a front surface 100, rear surface 102 opposite the front surface 100, a bottom edge 104, a top edge 106, and longitudinal ends 108, 110. In the illustrated embodiment, the thickness of the glass panel 28, between the front 100 and rear 102 surfaces, generally correspondence to the distance between the sidewalls 74, 76 of the channel rail 70 and between the retainer clip arms 94, 96, such that the glass panel 28 can be inserted into the channel rail 70 and with the front surface 100 contacting one of the clip arms 94 and the rear surface 102 contacting the other clip arm 96. The clip arms 94, 96 may act on the glass panel 28 to retain the glass panel 28 and hold the glass panel 28 in a vertical position. The bottom edge 104 is shaped to match the shape of the channel rail bottom wall 72, and in the illustrated embodiment is generally straight. The top edge 106 may also be generally straight, and as shown is parallel to the bottom edge 104, although the top edge 106 may otherwise have a decorative shape. The longitudinal ends 108, 110 may be straight, and may be parallel to form a rectangular shaped glass panel 28.
The glass panel 28 is inset into the channel rail 70, between the sidewalls 74, 76 of the channel rail 70. In an embodiment including the clips 90, the glass panel 28 is inserted into the channel rail 70 between the clip arms 94, 96 of any clips 90 that are positioned within the channel rail 70. The glass panel 28 may be inserted with the bottom edge 104 of the glass panel 28 abutting the clip floor 92 and the front 100 and rear 102 surfaces of the glass panel 28 contacting the clip arms 94, 96. As a result of the clips 90 and channel rail 70 positioned in the glass panel support notch 26, the bottom edge 104 of the glass panel 28 and a portion of the glass panel 28 adjacent to the bottom edge 104 are inset below the top edge 36 of the core 12 and within the notch 26. The longitudinal ends 108, 110 of the glass panel 28 may extend to the side edges 38, 40 of the core 12 to be adjacent to and directly facing the side edge materials 22, 24. Additional fasteners, spacer rails or adhesives may be used and inserted into the notch to retain the glass panel 28 within the notch 26 and form the panel construction 10.
In the arrangement shown in
The present invention also includes a method for forming a panel construction 10. In one embodiment, the method includes the steps of: (1) providing a core 12 having first and second opposing surfaces 30, 32, a top edge 36, a bottom edge 34, and first and second side edges 38, 40; (2) providing a first surface material 14 on the first surface 30, including extending the first surface material 14 to the top edge 36 of the first surface 30; (3) providing a top edge material 18 on the top edge 36; (4) cutting a glass panel support notch 26 in the top edge 36 by cutting through the top edge material 18, the glass panel support notch 26 extending through the first side edge 38 of the core and forming a first notch opening 60 in the first side edge 38 of the core 12; (5) providing a first side edge material 22 on the first side edge 38 of the core 12, the first side edge material 22 covering the first notch opening 60; (6) inserting a channel support rail 70 into the glass panel support notch 26, the channel support rail 70 including a floor 72 and a pair of upwardly extending sidewalls 74, 76; and (7) inserting a glass panel 28 into the channel rail 70 between the sidewalls 74, 76 of the channel rail 70, the glass panel 28 including a bottom panel edge 104 positioned within the channel rail 70 and below the top edge 36 of the core 12, the glass panel 28 including a top edge 106 opposite the bottom edge 104, the top edge 106 of the glass panel 28 extending outwardly beyond the channel rail 70 and the top edge 36 of the core 12. In one embodiment, the glass panel 28 includes a first side edge 108 that is adjacent to and directly faces the first side edge material 22.
The method may further include inserting a plurality of retention clips 90 into the channel rail 70, each of the retention clips 90 having a pair of clip arms 94, 96. The method may include inserting the glass panel between the clip arms 94, 96. The method may include providing the first side edge material 22 after the cutting of the glass panel support notch 26, such that the first side edge material 22 covers the first notch opening 60. The method may include providing a second one of the panel constructions 10′ in an in-line arrangement with the panel construction 10, wherein the second side edge material 24′ of the second panel construction 10′ directly faces the first side edge material 22 of the panel construction 10. The second side edge material 24′ may abut the first side edge material 22. The method may also include providing a second one of the panel constructions 10′ in an L-shaped arrangement with the panel construction 10, wherein the first side edge material 22 of the panel construction directly faces the second surface material 16 of the second panel construction 10′. Additional panel constructions 10 can be added to either of these arrangements in an in-line arrangement, an L-shaped arrangement, or another arrangement.
The above description is that of current embodiments of the invention. Various alterations and changes can be made without departing from the spirit and broader aspects of the invention as defined in the appended claims, which are to be interpreted in accordance with the principles of patent law including the doctrine of equivalents. This disclosure is presented for illustrative purposes and should not be interpreted as an exhaustive description of all embodiments of the invention or to limit the scope of the claims to the specific rails illustrated or described in connection with these embodiments. For example, and without limitation, any individual rail(s) of the described invention may be replaced by alternative rails that provide substantially similar functionality or otherwise provide adequate operation. This includes, for example, presently known alternative rails, such as those that might be currently known to one skilled in the art, and alternative rails that may be developed in the future, such as those that one skilled in the art might, upon development, recognize as an alternative. Further, the disclosed embodiments include a plurality of features that are described in concert and that might cooperatively provide a collection of benefits. The present invention is not limited to only those embodiments that include all of these features or that provide all of the stated benefits, except to the extent otherwise expressly set forth in the issued claims. Features of various embodiments may be used in combination with features from other embodiments. Directional terms, such as “vertical,” “horizontal,” “top,” “bottom,” “front,” “rear,” “upper,” “lower,” “inner,” “inwardly,” “outer,” “outwardly,” “forward,” and “rearward” are used to assist in describing the invention based on the orientation of the embodiments shown in the illustrations. The use of directional terms should not be interpreted to limit the invention to any specific orientation(s). Any reference to claim rails in the singular, for example, using the articles “a,” “an,” “the,” or “said,” is not to be construed as limiting the rail to the singular.
