BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Field of the Invention

The present invention relates generally to a cabinet organizer and more specifically it relates to a cabinet shelf organization system for improving flexibility in installation and positioning of cabinet shelves within a cabinet housing.

Description of the Related Art Any discussion of the related art throughout the specification should in no way be considered as an admission that such related art is widely known or forms part of common general knowledge in the field. Generally, cabinets are currently built with several shelves which, even if cases where they are adjustable, span the entire width of the cabinet housing and are supported from the sides of the cabinet only by protruding pegs. Such a configuration often will result in a lopsided or faulty shelf installation where one of the pegs comes free or is improperly installed After-market accessories adapted to provide aadditional storage space to cabinets are often the wrong height or width. Further, they are increasingly unstable which can cause damage or loss of goods in cases of shelf failure. Additionally, traditional shelves limit the height of items on the same shelf because they run side-to-side in cabinets and there is often half of the cubic space wasted in a cabinet. Because of the inherent problems with the related art, there is a need for a new and improved cabinet shelf organization system for improving flexibility in installation and positioning of cabinet shelves within a cabinet housing.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The invention generally relates to a cabinet shelf organization system which includes a cabinet housing with either a built-in or retroactively installed support insert. The support insert includes a grid-like arrangement of rows and columns of apertures. Cabinet shelves may be selectively arranged and installed within the cabinet housing by utilizing fastening rods extending through the cabinet shelves to anchor each shelf to corresponding apertures on the support insert in the desired location. The support insert may either be built in to the back wall of the cabinet housing or may be secured thereto through use of upper and lower mounts. There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, some of the features of the invention in order that the detailed description thereof may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are additional features of the invention that will be described hereinafter and that will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto. In this respect, before explaining at least one embodiment of the invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction or to the arrangements of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of the description and should not be regarded as limiting.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Various other objects, features and attendant advantages of the present invention will become fully appreciated as the same becomes better understood when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like reference characters designate the same or similar parts throughout the several views, and wherein: FIG. 1 is an upper perspective view of the present invention fully assembled. FIG. 2 is an upper perspective view illustrating positioning of a shelf within the cabinet housing. FIG. 3 is a rear view illustrating an internal support insert. FIG. 4 is a front view of the present invention in use. FIG. 5 is a side sectional view of the present invention taken along line 5-5 of FIG. 4. FIG. 6 is an upper perspective view of differently-sized support inserts for use with the present invention. FIG. 7 is a frontal view of a support insert for use with the present invention. FIG. 8 is a frontal view of the present invention fully assembled with an external support insert. FIG. 9 is a side sectional view of the present invention taken along line 9-9 of FIG. 8. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION A. Overview.

Turning now descriptively to the drawings, in which similar reference characters denote similar elements throughout the several views, FIGS. 1 through 9 illustrate a cabinet shelf organization system 10, which comprises a cabinet housing 20 with either a built-in or retroactively installed support insert 30. The support insert 30 includes a grid- like arrangement of rows 36 and columns 37 of apertures. Cabinet shelves 40 may be selectively arranged and installed within the cabinet housing 20 by utilizing fastening rods 42, 44 extending through the cabinet shelves 40 to anchor each shelf 40 to corresponding apertures 35 on the support insert 30 in the desired location. The support insert 30 may either be built in to the back wall 25 of the cabinet housing 20 or may be secured thereto through use of upper and lower mounts 31, 32. B. Cabinet Housing.

FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary cabinet housing 20 for use with the present invention. As shown therein, the cabinet housing 20 will generally include an upper wall 21, a first sidewall 22, a second sidewall 23, a lower wall 24 and a back wall 25 which together form the housing 20 for supporting various cabinet shelves 40. The present invention is adapted for use with various types of cabinet housings 20, and thus should not be construed as being limited to any particular exemplary configuration shown in the figures. It is further appreciated that the present invention is adapted both for use with newly-constructed cabinet housings 20 as well as existing cabinet housings 20 (i.e., retrofit). In a newly-constructed cabinet housing 20, the support insert 30 will be positioned within the back wall 25 of the housing 20. In an existing cabinet housing 20, the support insert 30 will be secured directly to the back wall 25 of the cabinet housing 20 through use of the upper and lower mounts 31, 32. C. Support Insert.

The present invention utilizes a support insert 30 for allowing flexibility in securing and aligning cabinet shelves 40 within the cabinet housing 20. The support insert 30 will generally be comprised of a grid-like configuration having an upper mount 31, a lower mount 32, a plurality of vertical supports 33 and a plurality of horizontal supports 34. The upper mount 31 and lower mount 32 of the support insert 30 are utilized with newly-constructed cabinet housings 20 to secure the support insert 30 to the back wall 25 of the cabinet housing 20. Embodiments of the present invention wherein the cabinet housing 20 is newly-constructed will not generally utilize upper and lower mounts 31, 32. As shown in FIG. 7, the upper and lower mounts 31, 32 generally include apertures 35 through which the mounts 31, 32 may be secured to the back wall 25, such as with a bolt. The vertical and horizontal supports 33, 34 will preferably extend perpendicularly with respect to each other to form a grid pattern. Vertical supports 33 will preferably be parallel to each other. Similarly, horizontal supports 34 will preferably be parallel to each other. The vertical and horizontal supports 33, 34 will preferably utilize equidistant spacing between each other and themselves to create a uniform support structure. Each intersection of a vertical support 33 with a horizontal support 34 will preferably include an aperture 35 adapted to anchor the fastening rods 42, 44 of the cabinet shelf 40 when installed. Thus, the support insert 30 includes a plurality of aperture rows 36 and a plurality of aperture columns 37 oriented in a grid array. Such a configuration allows great flexibility in the installation and positioning of cabinet shelves 40 within the housing 20. In some embodiments of the present invention, multiple support inserts 30 may be utilized within a single cabinet housing 20. In such an embodiment, the multiple support inserts 30 may be interlocked with each other by utilizing linkage connectors 38 and linkage receivers 39 positioned on the distal ends of the horizontal supports 34 as shown in FIG. 6. The linkage connectors 38 will generally be comprised of projections which are adapted to matingly engage with the linkage receivers 39, which are generally comprised of a slot formed within the distal end of a horizontal support 34. D. Cabinet Shelves.

The present invention will utilize a plurality of cabinet shelves 40 which may selectively be installed within the cabinet housing 20 utilizing the support insert 30. Various shapes and sizes of cabinet shelves 40 may be utilized within the same housing 20. The scope of the present invention should not be construed as being limited to any particular shape and/or size of cabinet shelf 40 shown in the figures. Each cabinet shelf 40 includes a pair of fastening rods 42, 44 which extend therethrough and protrude through its rear face. The protruding portion of the fastening rods 42, 44 is anchored within the selected apertures 35 of the support insert 30 to support the cabinet shelf 40 within the housing 20. Generally, a first fastening rod 42 will be positioned at a first end of the cabinet shelf 40 and a second fastening rod 44 will be positioned at a second end of the cabinet shelf 40. E. Alternate Embodiments.

It is appreciated that the present invention may be utilized in broader application than cabinet shelving 40. For example, the support insert 30 of the present invention may be secured to various other locations or structures other than a cabinet housing 20. In various alternate embodiments, the support insert 30 may be secured instead to such locations as office workstations or retail fixturing. Thus, it should be appreciated by one of ordinary skill in the art that the present invention may be utilized to secure various structures to various locations. Further, the present invention may be utilized to secure objects other than cabinet shelves 40. For example, the present invention's support insert 30 may be utilized to secure baskets, hooks or other objects to various structures by utilizing the same fastening rods 42, 44 discussed herein. F. Operation of Preferred Embodiment.

For newly-constructed cabinet housings 20, the support insert 30 will be built directly into the back wall 25 of the cabinet housing 20. In such an embodiment, the apertures 35 of the support insert 30 will extend forward through the back wall 25 of the cabinet housing 20 to provide anchor points. For existing cabinet housings 20, the present invention may be retroactively installed by securing the support insert 30 to the back wall of the housing 20 by securing fasteners through the upper and lower mounts 31, 32 of the support insert 30 and into the back wall 25. Where multiple support inserts 30 are utilized within a single housing 20, the support inserts 30 may be secured to each other via use of the linkage connectors 38 and linkage receivers 39. In either case, once the support insert 30 is properly installed, the cabinet shelves 40 may be positioned in any configuration desirable to the user of the present invention. Each cabinet shelf 40 will be installed by securing the fastening rods 42, 44 of each shelf 40 into corresponding anchoring apertures 35 within the support insert 30. Thus, flexibility when installing shelves 40 may be attained and a user of the present invention will have multiple options for shelving 40 positioning and spacing. Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. Although methods and materials similar to or equivalent to those described herein can be used in the practice or testing of the present invention, suitable methods and materials are described above. All publications, patent applications, patents, and other references mentioned herein are incorporated by reference in their entirety to the extent allowed by applicable law and regulations. In case of conflict, the present specification, including definitions, will control. The present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential attributes thereof, and it is therefore desired that the present embodiment be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive. Any headings utilized within the description are for convenience only and have no legal or limiting effect.