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| JP05115344 | RACK APPARATUS FOR SHOWCASE |
BERSAGEL, Henning (Lyngnesveien 35, Stavanger, N-4018, NO)
C L A I M S
1. A locking device for shelf drawers (4, 4b, 4c) in a rack
(1) , in which, typically for reasons of stability, only one shelf drawer should be allowed to be pulled out at a time, and in which each shelf drawer (4, 4b, 4c) is provided with a locking shoulder (40) which cooperates with the respective locking bodies (20b, 20c) of a movably supported locking rail (10), the locking bodies (20b, 20c) being in locking engagement with the locking shoulder (40) when the shelf drawer (4, 4b, 4c) is in its pushed-in position and the locking rail (10) is in its upper position, and the locking bodies (20b, 20c) being disengaged from the locking shoulder (40) when the locking rail (10) is in its lower position, the locking bodies (20b, 20c) following, during movement of a shelf drawer (4, 4b, 4c) out of its pushed-in position, a second slot (42) facing upwards and rearwards, said movement of the shelf drawer (4, 4b, 4c) causing the locking rail (10) to be moved into its upper position, c h ar a c t e r i z e d i n that a locking pawl (46) which is deactivated by its respective shelf drawer (4, 4b, 4c) when the shelf drawer (4, 4b, 4c) is near its pushed-in position, bars the locking rail (10) from being movable into its lower position when the shelf drawer (4, 4b, 4c) is disengaged from the locking body (20b, 20c) .
2. The device in accordance with claim 1, c h a r a c t e r i z e d i n that a latch (22) bearing on a pull-out support (8) bars, by means of a first locking body (20a) , the locking rail (10) from being moved into its lower position when the pull-out support (8) is not pulled out.
3. The device in accordance with claim. 1, c har a c t e r i z e d i n that the locking pawl (46) is resiliently biased towards its active position by means of a second spring (39) . |
LOCKING DEVICE FOR SHELF DRAWERS
This invention relates to a locking device for shelf drawers. More particularly, it relates to a locking device for shelf drawers in a rack in which, typically for reasons of stability, only one shelf drawer should be allowed to be pulled out at a time. Each shelf drawer is provided with a locking shoulder, which cooperates with the respective locking bodies of a movable locking rail, the locking bodies being in locking engagement with the locking shoulder when the shelf drawer is in its pushed-in position and the locking rail is in its upper position. The locking bodies are disengaged from the locking shoulder when the locking rail is in its lower position, the locking bodies following, during movement of a shelf drawer out of its pushed-in position, a second slot facing upwards and rearwards. Said movement of the shelf drawer causes the locking rail to be moved into its upper position. A locking pawl, which is deactivated by its respective shelf drawer when the shelf drawer is near its pushed-in position, bars the locking rail from being movable into its lower position when the shelf drawer is disengaged from the locking body.
Indications of directions, such as upwards, downwards, rearwards and forwards, refer to the rack in the position of use, the shelf drawers being pulled out in the direction of the front portion of the rack.
Increasingly, racks are provided with pull-out shelves, so- called shelf drawers. This is particularly suitable in the case of racks provided with so-called display troughs, in which the goods are moved forwards towards a stop by means of gravity, as racks of this kind can be relatively limited in space and thereby difficult to refill.
If the rack is a free-standing rack and perhaps also runs on wheels, a stability problem may occur if more than one shelf drawer is pulled out at a time.
In addition, it is common for shelf drawers comprising display troughs also to be moved along a downward-sioping path as they are pulled out, which requires the shelf drawers to be lockable in their pushed-in position.
Known locking devices for shelf drawers are relatively cumbersome to use, as there may be a risk of the locking device not always being activated as presupposed.
The invention has as its object to remedy or reduce at least one of the drawbacks of the prior art.
The object is achieved according to the invention through the features, which are specified in the description below and in the claims that follow.
In a locking device for shelf drawers in a rack in which, typically for reasons of stability, only one shelf drawer should be allowed to be pulled out at a time, each shelf drawer is provided with a locking shoulder which cooperates with the respective locking bodies of a movable locking rail. The locking bodies are in locking engagement with the locking shoulder when the shelf drawer is in its pushed-in position and the locking rail is in its upper position. The locking bodies are disengaged from the locking shoulder when the
locking rail is in its lower position, the locking bodies following, during movement of a shelf drawer out of its pushed-in position, a second slot facing upwards and rearwards. Said movement of the shelf drawer causes the locking rail to be moved into its upper position. A locking device in accordance with the invention is characterized by a locking pawl, which can be deactivated by its respective shelf drawer when the shelf drawer is near its pushed-in position, barring the locking rail from being movable into its lower position when the shelf drawer is disengaged from the locking body.
By means of a first locking body, a stop bearing on a pull- out support bars the locking rail from being movable into its lower position when the pull-out support is not pulled out.
The locking pawl is resiliently biased towards its active position by means of a second spring.
In a preferred embodiment each shelf drawer is provided with yet another releasable drawer brake, which is arranged to stop the shelf drawer that is being moved, and to retain the shelf drawer in any position between a fully pushed-in position and a fully pulled-out position.
The locking device according to the invention provides a reliable, easy to operate and relatively inexpensive solution to the task of locking shelf drawers relative to each other. The locking device can only with difficulty be put out of function during everyday operation.
In what follows, there is described a non-limiting example of a preferred embodiment which is visualized in the accompanying drawings, in which:
Figure 1 shows a side view of a rack which includes shelf drawers, and in which a support has been pulled out to stabilize the rack during the filling of a shelf drawer;
Figure 2 shows a view I-I of figure 1, in which the supporting structure and the locking rail of the rack are shown in section;
Figure 3 shows, a view II-II of figure 2 , in which the locking rail is in its upper locking position;
Figure 4 shows the same as figure 3, but here the pull-out support is pulled out, the locking rail thereby being moved into its lower position;
Figure 5 shows the same as figure 3 , but here a shelf drawer is moved outwards from its pushed-in position, whereby the locking rail is moved upwards towards its upper position;
Figure 6 shows the same as figure 3 , but here a locking pawl has been moved in underneath the locking body of the locking rail; and
Figure 7 shows a side view of the cheek of a shelf drawer, in which a drawer brake is shown.
In the drawings the reference numeral 1 indicates a rack comprising a supporting structure 2, six shelf drawers 4, each with a number of display troughs 6, a pull-out support 8 and a locking rail 10. Of the shelf drawers 4, the lowermost shelf drawer is indicated by 4b, whereas the lowermost but one shelf drawer is indicated by 4c. The display troughs 6 are shown only in figure 1.
The rack 1 may be placed in a refrigerator, not shown, the display troughs 6 being arranged in such a way that if a product 12 is removed, the remaining products 12 located in the display troughs 6 will be moved forwards by means of gravity.
The shelf drawers 4 are connected to the shelf cheeks 14 of the rack 1 by means of ball guides 16 according to a technique known per se. The shelf cheeks 14 can be placed at optional heights in the supporting structure 2 of the rack 1.
In figure 1 the pull-out support 8 has been pulled out into its active position, in which it contributes to the rack being stable even when a fully loaded shelf drawer 4 is pulled out to be filled with goods, see the lower shelf drawer 4 in figure 1.
The locking rail 10 which is arranged on the inside of the vertical portion of the supporting structure 2 , is supported vertically movable in a lower guide 18 and an upper guide, not shown. The locking rail 10 is provided with a number of locking bodies 20, the first locking body 20a of which cooperates with a latch 22, the second locking body 20b cooperates with the lower shelf drawer 4b and the third locking body 20c cooperates with the lowermost but one shelf drawer 4c. The locking bodies are shown in figures 3 to 6, the locking rail 10 being shown only partially, for illustrative reasons.
In its initial position, in which the locking rail 10 is in its upper position, the locking body 20a is in a first slot 24 in a latch plate 26. The first slot 24 extends at a slope downwards and rearwards, where it is open.
The latch plate 26 is connected by means of a coupling rod 32 to a stop 30, which is rotatable about a first axis 28. The
latch plate 26, stop 30 and coupling rod 32 form the latch 22. A first spring 34 seeks to move the latch 22 forwards.
Each shelf drawer 4 is provided with a locking bail, the lower shelf drawer 4b being assigned the locking bail 36b and the lowermost but one shelf drawer 4c being assigned the locking bail 36c. The locking bails 36b, 36c are connected to their respective shelf drawers at their front portions 38, see figure 2, and extend rearwards, spaced from their respective shelf drawers 4b, 4c.
The locking bails 36b, 36c are formed with a locking shoulder 40 lockingly engaging their respective locking bodies 20b,
20c when the locking rail 10 is in its uppermost position, whereby the corresponding shelf drawer 4b, 4c is prevented from being moved forwards .
By moving the locking rail 10 into its lower position, the locking bodies 20b, 20c lose their locking engagement with their respective locking shoulders 40. The locking bails 36b,
36c are assigned a second slot 42 extending at a slope upwards and rearwards from just under the locking shoulder 40 to the rear edge of the locking bails 36b, 36c where the second slot 42 is open.
A locking pawl 46 is pivotally connected to each of the shelf cheeks 14 by means of a locking pawl axle 48. When, for example, the shelf drawer 4b is in its pushed-in position, the locking pawl 46 is in its inactive position, the locking pawl 46 resting on the front portion 38 of the locking bail 36b. A second spring 44 urges the locking pawl 46 towards the front portion 38.
A lock 52 pivotal about a pin 50 is provided with a through bore 54 spaced from the pin 50. An axle 56 connected to the shelf cheek 14 extends through the bore 54, the pin 50 being
arranged perpendicularly relative to the axle 56. The pin 50 is connected to the shelf drawer 4. A spring, not shown, seeks to rotate the lock 52 in a manner known per se into engagement with the axle 56. This drawer brake prevents the shelf drawer 4 from being moved unintentionally outwards.
The shelf drawer 4 is provided with a release 58 rotating, when being pushed in, the lock 52 about the pin 50 in a releasing direction. By releasing the release 58, the lock 52 will brake and retain the shelf drawer 4 in any position between its extreme positions .
In figure 3 the locking rail 10 is in its upper locking position, in which the locking bodies 20b and 20c engage the locking shoulders 40 of, respectively, the lower shelf drawer 4b and the lowermost but one shelf drawer 4c. The locking rail 10 is prevented from being moved downwards by the first locking body 20a which is in the first slot 24, the latch 22 bearing on the pull-out support 8.
When the pull-out support 8 is pulled out, see figure 4, the stop 30 loses contact with the pull-out support 8, whereby the first spring 34 moves the latch plate 26 and the coupling rod 32 in the forward direction. Thereby the stop 30 is pivoted about the first axis 28, while, at the same time, the first locking body 20a is moved down, and out of, the first slot 24. Thereby, the locking bodies 20b, 20c lose contact with the locking shoulders 40, whereby the shelf drawers 4b, 4c are free to be moved out from their pushed-in position.
If the lowermost but one shelf drawer 4c is released by operating the release 58 and is moved out from its pushed-in position, see figure 5, the third locking body 20c is moved along the second slot 42 while the third locking body 20c and the locking rail are thereby lifted upwards. Thereby, the
locking pawl 46 loses its contact with the front portion 38 and is rotated by the second spring 44 about the locking pawl axle 48 until it is underneath the third locking body 20c, see figure 6.
The second locking body 20b again bears on the locking shoulder 40 of the first locking plate 36b, whereby the second shelf drawer 4b is prevented from being moved out from its inner position. The pull-out support 8 is also prevented from being moved inwards, as the first slot 24 of the latch plate 26 does not correspond with the first locking body 20a.
When the lowermost but one shelf drawer 4c is moved towards its inner position, tlϊe locking pawl 46 is first pivoted away from its position underneath the third locking body 20c, after which the third locking body 20c enters the second slot 42 and is moved along it until the third locking body 20c and thereby the locking rail 10 are in their lower positions.
Another shelf 4, 4b can now be moved from its pushed-in position, or the pull-out support 8 can be pushed in, as the first slot 24 now corresponds with the first locking body 20a. By the first locking body 20a being moved inwards in the first slot 24, the locking rail 10 is again lifted into its upper locking position.