MAGNETIC ORGANIZER

BACKGROUND QF THE INVENTION

Field of the Invention

This invention relates to a vertical, panel-like organizer structured to have movable supports coupled thereto, and more specifically, to a magnetic organizer having a generally planar magnetic member with movable support assemblies coupled thereto, said generally planar magnetic member having at least one horizontally extending protuberance on an attachment surface.

Background Information

Vertical organizers are devices structured to support various items along a vertical surface. Of course, vertical organizers require an attaching means structured to support each item in its vertical position. Thus, in perhaps its most primitive form, a vertical organizer includes a series of pegs or nails extending from a vertical wall. The user could then hang tools of an appropriate shape, e.g., the curved side of a claw hammer, or tools with an appropriately-positioned hole or loop of material, from the

Peg-

While simple and functional, a fixed-peg system had the disadvantage of not being adjustable. This could limit the number of tools, and their positions, stored on the organizer. There are at least two improvements that overcome this difficulty; pegboards and magnetic strips, both of which are typically coupled to a wall. A pegboard is a sheet of material having a series of holes therethrough. The holes are typically disposed in a grid or other regular pattern. A "peg" may be inserted into a hole and used to store a tool or other device. Typically, a peg included a portion that extended along the pegboard, along with two bent tips structured to be inserted into the holes, and another portion that extended generally perpendicular to the pegboard. If the user needed to make more room or just wanted to reposition the tool, the user simply removed the peg from its first hole(s) and inserted the peg in another. Further, the "pegs" could easily be adapted to store different types of tools. For example, a peg could be bent into a horizontal loop and used to store screwdrivers and other elongated tools, a peg could be split into a yoke and used to support hammers or

similar tools, a peg could be a U-shaped hook, or otherwise adapted to a specific tool. While pegboards are adjustable, the process of moving the pegs can be time consuming. For example, a user may shift a series of pegs to one side to accommodate a new tool. However, after placing the new tool in its place, the user may discover the pegs are still too close, and the process has to be repeated.

Magnetic organizers typically have an elongated, permanent magnet disposed between two steel, or other ferrous metal, plates. The thin edges of the plates are used as magnetic coupling surfaces. Often, two such devices were disposed in a spaced relationship. The devices typically extended generally horizontally. A user may attach any ferrous tool to the exposed edges of the plates. With such a magnetic device, a user may quickly shift the tools around in order to accommodate new tools. The disadvantage to this device is that it typically extends for a limited length, thereby limiting the number of tools that may be attached. Further, because the plates and/or different devices are held in a spaced relationship, the user cannot, for example, move the tools to a different vertical location on the wall. Further, while the device is, by its nature, limited to ferrous tools, even a small amount of plastic, such as a coating on a handle, could diminish the attraction between the magnet and the tool to a point where the magnetic force is insufficient to hold the tool to the magnet. While the magnetic attraction could be increased by using stronger magnets, such stronger magnets are expensive.

One attempt to combine the best features of these two systems is to provide a ferromagnetic sheet and supports, e.g., "pegs" of various shapes, having a ferromagnetic base. That is, at least one of the two components, either a sheet or the base of the supports, was a magnet. The other was either another magnet or, more typically, a ferrous material. Such a device addressed the disadvantages of the prior two devices. Like a pegboard, the supports could be moved to any location on the sheet, including different vertical locations; but, like a magnetic organizer, the user could simply attach/detach a support and not have inserted pegs into holes.

Unfortunately, this configuration was not optimal either. While the magnets were typically strong enough to resist being separated from the sheet, the magnets did not have enough attraction to prevent the support from sliding down the sheet. That is, the magnets could not prove a sufficient magnetic attraction to create a high

starting friction between the sheet and the support base. Thus, the support would slide down the sheet. This was especially true when a mass, typically a tool, was coupled to the support.

SUMMARY QF THE INVENTION

The present invention overcomes this problem by providing cooperative magnetic members, one generally planar member, and one support assembly having a magnetic member, and including one or more horizontally-extending protuberances on the generally planar member. The protuberances create a non- vertical surface that at least some portion of the support assemblies may catch upon, thereby preventing downward sliding.

It is noted that any two objects placed in contact with each other have a "starting friction" that must be overcome prior to the two objects sliding against each other. Once objects are in motion, a "sliding friction" exists therebetween. The force required to overcome the starting friction is always higher than the force required to overcome the sliding friction. Typically, both the starting friction and the sliding friction may be increased by increasing the coarseness of the two objects. For example, it is easier to slide two sheets of plain paper against each other than it is to slide two pieces of sandpaper against each other. Further, starting friction is increased and therefore the force required to overcome the starting friction is increased, when the objects are biased or pressed together. Again, using sheets of paper as an example, if one person was to hold three sheets of paper between their thumb and forefinger and apply minimal force, another person could remove the middle sheet of paper with ease. This is because there is a minimal starting friction between the sheets of paper; however, if the person holding the paper were to greatly increase the force applied by their thumb and forefinger, the person removing the middle sheet would have to pull harder as the starting friction is greatly increased.

The strength of a magnetic attraction relates to both the strength of the magnet and the distance to the ferrous object. Further, even a slight increase in distance between the magnet and the object will greatly reduce the strength of the magnetic attraction. Thus, when coupling two objects by magnetic attraction, it is best to have

as much of the surface of the two magnetically attracted objects as close together as possible, and more preferably in contact with each other. Accordingly, most magnets and the surface to which they are attached are smooth, thereby increasing the surface area in contact; but, as noted above, smooth surfaces tend to have a lower starting/sliding friction. Thus, while an increased magnetic force acts to increase the starting friction, that is, the magnetic force is similar to pressing the magnet against the surface, this increase in starting friction is not always so great as to prevent the magnet from sliding on a ferrous surface. This is especially true as the inclination of the surface becomes more vertical and/or the weight of the magnet, or any object the magnet supports, increases.

The present invention overcomes the problem of sliding by providing one or more protuberances on the sheet. The protuberances have a sufficient perpendicular offset so that the support assembly must be lifted off the sheet in order to move past the protuberance. That is, as noted above, many magnetic devices have a sufficient strength to support the weight of a tool, i.e., the magnet device will not detach from a ferrous surface due to the weight of the tool, but not enough strength to prevent sliding on a vertical surface. Thus, when a protuberance has a sufficient perpendicular offset, the support assembly must be lifted off the sheet in order to move past the protuberance.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A full understanding of the invention can be gained from the following description of the preferred embodiments when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is an isometric view of a magnetic organizer; Figure 2 is a side view of the magnetic organizer;

Figure 3 is a partial, cross-sectional side view of one embodiment of the magnetic organizer; and Figure 4 is an isometric view of another embodiment of a support assembly.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS As used herein, "generally planar" is used in a broad sense meaning an object having a thickness that is substantially smaller than the object's length and/or width and which generally defines a plane. It is specifically noted that "generally planar" does not mean substantially flat as one object of this invention is to provide a "generally planar" member having protuberances on an attachment surface.

As used herein, a "magnetic member" is either a member that is attracted to iron or steel, e.g., a typical magnet, or an iron or steel member to which a magnet is attracted. Further, when two "magnetic members" are identified as "cooperative," it means that at least one magnetic member is attracted to iron or steel. That is, for example, two steel members may each be "magnetic members," but are not "cooperative magnetic members" as neither member would be attracted to the other.

As shown in Figures 1 and 2, a magnetic organizer 10 includes a generally planar magnetic member 12 and at least one support assembly 14. The generally planar magnetic member 12 has an outer attachment surface 16 and is disposed in a generally vertical plane. The outer attachment surface 16 has at least one protuberance 18 thereon, which will be discussed in greater detail below. As noted above, a "magnetic member" 12 may be either a member that is attracted to iron or steel, e.g., a typical magnet, or an iron or steel member to which a magnet is attracted. In the preferred embodiment, the generally planar magnetic member 12 is a sheet 13

of ferrous metal and the at least one support assembly magnetic member 26 (Fig. 3), discussed below, is a magnet. While the claims are not so limited, the remainder of this discussion will utilize this configuration of the magnetic members 12, 26. The sheet 13, except for any protuberances 18, is preferably generally flat and defines a plane.

The at least one support assembly 14 includes a support arm 20 and a base 22. The support arm 20 extends from the base 22. Preferably, the at least one support assembly 14 includes a moldable shell, such as, but not limited to, a plastic shell 24. The plastic shell 24 defines the support arm 20 and a base 22. The support arm 20 is structured to support a mass and may be of any shape, such as, but not limited to, a peg (shown), a hook, a loop, or a yoke. The portion of the plastic shell 24 that acts as a base 22 has cavities structured to accommodate one or more support assembly magnetic member(s) 26 therein. While the base 22 and the support assembly magnetic member 26 may have any shape, the support assembly magnetic member 26 preferably has a height (from the back surface of the base 22 to the outer side of the base 22) of between about .10 inch and .25 inch, and more preferably, about .19 inch, and a width of between about .38 inch and .75 inch, and more preferably, about .50 inch. The plastic shell 24 may encapsulate the support assembly magnetic member 26, but in the preferred embodiment, the support assembly magnetic member 26 has an exposed face which, preferably, defines the back surface of the at least one support assembly 14. The exposed face of the support assembly magnetic member 26, or the back side of the base 22, acts as an attachment surface 28. The generally planar magnetic member 12 and the support assembly magnetic member 26 are cooperative magnetic members 12, 26, and the support assembly magnetic member attachment surface 28 is structured to be magnetically coupled to the generally planar magnetic member attachment surface 16. Thus, when the generally planar magnetic member attachment surface 16 and the support assembly magnetic member attachment surface 28 engage each other, the cooperative magnetic members 12, 26 are coupled by magnetic attraction. Further, the support assembly base 22 includes at least one protuberance interface 27 structured to engage the at least one protuberance 18. That is, the support assembly base 22, preferably, includes a protuberance interface 27 extending

generally horizontally across the support assembly base 22 and which engages the at least one protuberance 18 over substantially the entire length of the protuberance interface 27. When the at least one protuberance 18 engages substantially the length of the protuberance interface 27, the at least one support assembly 14 is less likely to pivot or rotate when the at least one support assembly 14 engages the at least one protuberance 18. The protuberance interface 27 may be the bottom surface of the support assembly base 22 or a support assembly base attachment surface notch 64 (discussed below). When the protuberance interface 27 is the bottom surface of the support assembly base 22, the protuberance interface 27 is, preferably, angled to correspond to the shape of the upper face 17 (discussed below) of the at least one protuberance 18. As noted below, the at least one protuberance upper face 17 may be angled downwardly, that is, more than ninety degrees from vertical, generally perpendicular to vertical, or upwardly, that is, less than ninety degrees from vertical. Thus, the protuberance interface 27 may have a corresponding downwardly angled bottom surface, a generally perpendicular lower surface, or an upwardly angled bottom surface.

The at least one protuberance 18 is structured to resist motion, more specifically, a descending sliding motion, between the at least one support assembly 14 and the generally planar magnetic member 12 when the at least one support assembly 14 is coupled to the generally planar magnetic member 12 with the cooperative magnetic members 12, 26 engaging each other, and when the support assembly 14 is supporting a mass, the mass being sufficient to overcome the starting friction between the at least one support assembly 14 and the generally planar magnetic member 12. As stated, the at least one protuberance 18 is structured to resist a descending sliding motion of the at least one support assembly 14. Thus, the at least one support assembly 14 must be magnetically coupled to the generally planar magnetic member 12 at a location above the at least one protuberance 18. The at least one protuberance 18 has a perpendicular offset 30, indicated by the arrow in the Figures, extending a distance normal to the plane of the sheet 13. The offset 30, preferably, extends between about 0.10 and 0.5 inch and more preferably, about 0.30 inch, off the plane of the metal sheet 13. Preferably, the at least one protuberance 18

is elongated and extends in a substantially horizontal direction over the generally planar magnetic member attachment surface 16 and includes an upper face 17.

The at least one protuberance 18 may be a deformation 40 in the generally planar magnetic member attachment surface 16 and/or an elongated magnetic member 43 having an attachment surface 44. Where the at least one protuberance 18 is a deformation 40, the metal sheet 13 is crimped, bent, or otherwise deformed, so that the deformation 40 defines the at least one protuberance 18. That is, the at least one protuberance 18 may be a deformation forming a ridge 46 extending generally horizontally across the generally planar magnetic member attachment surface 16 and projecting generally perpendicular from the plane of said generally planar magnetic member 12. The ridge 46 may have a substantially horizontal upper face 48, or an angled upper face 50, relative to the plane of the generally planar magnetic member attachment surface 16. The shape of the ridge 46 may be based on aesthetics and/or the nature of the sheet 13. For example, a sheet 13 of a magnetic rubber material may not easily bend to a ninety degree angle. As such, a ridge 46 having an angled upper face 50 would be easier to form. The support assembly base 22, preferably, has a shape that corresponds to the shape of the ridge upper face 48, 50.

Alternatively, the deformation 40 may be a lip 60 having an associated cutout 62. That is, a generally horizontal cut may be made in the sheet 13. The tips of the horizontal cut include relatively-small, vertical cuts of at least the thickness of the sheet 13 and preferably slightly longer. In this configuration, the material of the sheet 13 adjacent to the cut may be lifted out of the plane of the sheet 13, thereby forming the lip 60. In one embodiment, the lip 60 is disposed below the cutout 62 and is a lower lip 63. Preferably, the lower lip 63 extends outwardly at an angle between about perpendicular to the generally planar magnetic member 12 to about ten degrees from vertical. Such a lower lip 63 acts as a protuberance 18 against which a support assembly 14 may rest. However, in a preferred embodiment, the at least one support assembly base attachment surface 28 includes a generally horizontal notch 64 extending thereacross. The notch 64 is sized and shaped to correspond to the shape of the lower lip 63. In this configuration, the support assembly base attachment surface notch 64 is structured to engage the lower lip 63 in a tongue-and-groove manner.

As shown in Figure 3, the lip 60 may be an upper lip 65 having an associated cutout 62. Again, a generally horizontal cut may be made in the sheet 13. The tips of the horizontal cut include relatively-small, vertical cuts about the thickness of the sheet 13. In this configuration, the material of the sheet 13 adjacent to the cut may be lifted out of the plane of the sheet 13, thereby forming the upper lip 65. In this embodiment, the upper lip 65, as the name implies, is disposed above the associated cutout 62. Further, the upper lip 65 preferably includes an outwardly extending portion 66, which extends either horizontally or is downwardly angled, and a downwardly extending vertical portion 68. In this configuration, the upper lip 65 acts as a protuberance 18 for a support assembly 14 disposed thereabove. Further, the upper lip 65 forms a pocket 70 into which the upper edge of a support assembly 14, or an additional tab 72 extending upwardly from the support assembly base 22, may be inserted. This configuration is useful for a support assembly 14 having an extended support arm 20. When a tool, or other mass, is hung from an extended support arm 20, a substantial torque may be created at the interface between the cooperative magnetic members 12, 26. This torque may be strong enough to overcome the magnetic attraction between the cooperative magnetic members 12, 26 and cause the cooperative magnetic members 12, 26 to separate. To prevent this, the upper edge of a support assembly 14, or an additional tab 72 extending upwardly from the support assembly base 22, is inserted into the pocket 70 as described above. Once a portion of the support assembly 14 is in the pocket 70, the pocket 70 captures the support assembly 14 and prevents the separation of the cooperative magnetic members 12, 26. Preferably, a second protuberance 18 is disposed an appropriate distance below the upper lip 65 to support the support assembly 14 from below. As an alternative to a deformation 40 in the generally planar magnetic member attachment surface 16, the at least one protuberance 18 may be a separate elongated member 42 that is coupled to the generally planar magnetic member 12. Preferably, the separate elongated member 42 is an elongated magnetic member 43 having an attachment surface 44. The elongated magnetic member attachment surface 44 is structured to be magnetically coupled to the generally planar magnetic member 12. The elongated magnetic member 43 is simply a magnetic member 12 having a cooperative relationship with the generally planar magnetic member 12. The

elongated magnetic member 43, preferably, has a thickness corresponding to a minimal offset 30. Thus, the weight of the elongated magnetic member 43 is minimal. The elongated magnetic member 43 is magnetically coupled to the generally planar magnetic member 12 and oriented to extend generally horizontally. This type of protuberance 18 has the advantage of being movable. That is, if the protuberance 18 is not in a desired location, the user may simply detach, or slide, the elongated magnetic member 43 to a different location on the generally planar magnetic member 12. Alternatively, the separate elongated member 42 may be attached by another means, such as, but not limited to, an adhesive, fasteners, welding, or other known means. If such an alternate attachment means is used, a nonmagnetic elongated member (not shown) may be used.

The elongated magnetic member 43 may also be formed with an upper lip 63 A. That is, a longitudinal edge of the elongated magnetic member 43 may be bent so as to extend outwardly/upwardly from the plane of the generally planar magnetic member 12. As with the embodiment described above, the upper lip 63 A may engage a notch 64 in the at least one support assembly base 22. The elongated magnetic member 43 may also be formed with a lower lip (not shown) that forms a pocket 70 relative to the portion of the generally planar magnetic member 12 disposed below the elongated magnetic member 43 in a manner similar to the pocket 70 described above. Such an elongated magnetic member 43 with a lower lip is structured to support high torque/heavy loads.

In another embodiment, the generally planar magnetic member 12 may be shaped as channel magnetic member 80, as shown in Figure 4. As described below, the channel magnetic member 80 has a generally "C-shaped" cross-section. As it is generally difficult to incorporate this shape into a sheet metal panel, this embodiment is disclosed as having a single channel magnetic member 80. However, it is understood that, while difficult to form this shape in sheet metal, it is not impossible and the generally planar magnetic member 12 may incorporate more than the disclosed, single channel magnetic member 80. For example, multiple channel magnetic member 80 may be attached (not shown) to a sheet 13 whereby each channel magnetic member 80 acts as a protuberance 18. The channel magnetic

member 80 is, preferably, coupled directly to a wall and is structured to support high torque/heavy loads.

In this embodiment, the channel magnetic member 80 includes a body 82 having an elongated generally planar base portion 84, a first, upper depending sidewall 86 extending generally perpendicularly to the base portion, a second, lower depending sidewall 88 extending generally perpendicularly to the base portion 84, and one overhanging lip 90. The overhanging lip 90 extends downwardly from the first, upper depending sidewall 86 and is, preferably, generally parallel to the base portion 84. In this configuration, the channel magnetic member 80 forms a channel with an overhanging lip 90. It is further noted that the channel magnetic member 80 does not have a lip extending upwardly from the lower depending sidewall 88. Thus, the lower depending sidewall 88 acts as the at least one protuberance 18 and may engage any support assembly 14 disposed thereabove and prevent the support assembly 14 from sliding down, or off, the planar magnetic member 12. A support assembly 14, as described above, is structured to be disposed, and captured, within the magnetic channel member 80. That is, the support assembly base 22 is sized to be disposed between the first, upper depending sidewall 86 and the second, lower depending sidewall 88 with the support assembly base 22 extending substantially between the first, upper depending sidewall 86 and the second, lower depending sidewall 88. In this configuration, the upper, outer edge of the support assembly base 22 will contact, or be disposed immediately adjacent to, the overhanging lip 90. Thus, the support assembly 14 is captured by the elongated magnetic channel member body 82. When a heavy tool, or other heavy item, is supported by the support assembly 14, the torque created thereby will tend to cause the upper edge of the support assembly base 22 to rotate away from the magnetic channel member 80; however, the upper edge of the support assembly base 22 is held in place by the overhanging lip 90. That is, the upper edge of the support assembly base 22 is biased against the overhanging lip 90.

It is noted that the magnetic channel member 80 substantially traps the support assembly 14 within the defined channel. As such, an alternate, non-magnetic support (not shown) may be utilized. However, as the magnetic channel member 80 does not have a lip extending upwardly from the lower depending sidewall 88, an unused or

unencumbered support assembly 14 would not have the upper edge of the support assembly base 22 biased against the overhanging lip 90 and may be too loose to stay within the magnetic channel member 80. When the support assembly 14 includes the magnetic member 26, the magnetic member 26 aids in keeping an unencumbered support assembly 14 within the magnetic channel member 80.

It is noted that a single, generally planar magnetic member 12 may include two or more different types of protuberances 18. In a preferred embodiment, at least one protuberance 18 is selected from the group including: a deformation 40 in the sheet 13 of ferrous material and/or an elongated magnetic member 43 having an attachment surface.

While specific embodiments of the invention have been described in detail, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that various modifications and alternatives to those details could be developed in light of the overall teachings of the disclosure. Accordingly, the particular arrangements disclosed are meant to be illustrative only and not limiting as to the scope of the invention which is to be given the full breadth of the claims appended and any and all equivalents thereof.