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(11) | EP 0 430 660 A1 |
| (12) | EUROPEAN PATENT APPLICATION |
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| (54) | Shelf unit and kit of parts therefor |
| (57) A wall-mounted adjustable shelf unit comprising shelves (10), brackets (11, 12) to
support the shelves and at least one upright (13) adapted to be attached to the wall
and provided with spaced-apart apertures (18), the brackets engaging in selected ones
of the apertures to support the brackets in a plurality of different positions relative
to the at least one upright, has the upright(s) and brackets designed so that the
apertures face the wall and are thus invisible when the unit is viewed from the front. |
[0001] This invention relates to a wall-mounted adjustable shelf unit comprising shelves, brackets to support the shelves and at least one upright adapted to be attached to the wall and provided with spaced-apart apertures, the brackets engaging in selected ones of the apertures to support the brackets in a plurality of different positions relative to the at least one upright.
[0002] One drawback of known wall-mounted adjustable shelf units is that the spaced-apart apertures on the uprights) give the unit an unaesthetic functional look which makes the units unattractive in a domestic environment. This invention seeks to avoid this drawback by arranging that the upright(s) and brackets are designed so that the apertures face the wall. GB-A-2103073 discloses a shelf unit in which the brackets extend completely around each upright and locate in apertures in a side region of each upright.
[0003] Typically there will be two uprights and two brackets for each shelf and the or each upright will be of rectangular cross-section, the apertures being formed in a rear face thereof.
[0004] Conveniently the spaced-apart apertures are slots intended to extend substantially horizontally in use.
[0005] Preferably each bracket has two ears designed to bear against opposite sides of the or each upright, one ear including a tongue to enter a selected one of the apertures. A main body portion of each bracket desirably lies in one plane and each of the two ears lies in a respective mutually perpendicular plane. Suitably the one ear including a tongue is parallel to a further ear at the other end of the bracket. It is convenient if a face of the one ear which includes a tongue bears flatly against the rear face of a rectangular section upright and the other ear which engages a front face of the upright bears edgewise on said front face. Normally the transverse spacing between the face of the one ear and the edge of the other ear substantially equals the width of the upright between the front and rear faces.
[0006] A particularly convenient arrangement follows if each shelf and each bracket are provided with complementary holes to receive a screw-threaded fixing member allowing each shelf to be fixed to its bracket(s) and assembled to and disassembled from the upright(s) with its bracket(s) as a unit.
[0007] The invention also extends to a kit of parts for making a shelf unit, which kit of parts includes a pair of rectangular section slotted uprights, n shelves and 2n brackets, where n is a number between 2 and 10, the uprights being arranged so that when mounted to a wall, the slots therein face the wall.
[0008] The invention will now be further described, by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:-
Figure 1 is a front view of a two-shelf wall-mounted shelf unit according to this invention mounted on a wall,
Figure 2 is an enlarged side view of part of the unit of Figure 1,
Figure 3 is a scrap plan from above of the part shown in Figure 2,
Figure 4 is a scrap view of part of the rear of one of the uprights of the shelf unit with a bracket secured thereto,
Figure 5 shows how the position of a shelf on the uprights can be adjusted when required, and
Figure 6 shows how a pair of brackets are attached to a shelf.
[0009] Referring to the drawings, the wall-mounted adjustable shelf unit comprises shelves 10 (only two are shown in Figure 1 but just one shelf or more than two can be used in a unit), a pair of brackets 11 and 12 (one left- and one right-hand - see Figure 6) to support each shelf and a pair of uprights 13 attached in parallel spaced-apart relationship to a wall 14 by fixing members (e.g. screws) 15 (see Figure 3). The heads of the fixing members 15 can be accommodated within the hollow uprights 13 (as shown in Figure 3) or can be exposed on the front face of the uprights.
[0010] The uprights 13 are shown to be of square cross-section and this is preferred, but other cross-sections (e.g. other rectangular or polygonal shapes, circular or elliptical) are possible.
[0011] Each upright 13 is spaced from the wall 14 by a pair of spacers 16, the region (e.g. the rear face 17 as shown) of the upright facing the wall being provided with a series of spaced-apart apertures 18. As shown, the apertures 18 are narrow horizontal slots uniformly spaced apart along the entire length of the rear face 17 of each upright, but slots of different shape and covering only parts of the length of each upright can also be used.
[0012] Each bracket 11 and 12 has two ears 20 and 21, one (20) adapted to bear on the front face 19 of each upright and the other (21) adapted to bear on the rear face 17 of each upright. Each ear 21 includes a tongue 22 designed to enter a selected one of the apertures 18.
[0013] From Figures 2, 3 and 4, it can be seen that each bracket 11 or 12 has a main portion 23 lying in one plane with the ears 20 and 21 lying in a respective mutually perpendicular plane. In this way, in use, the ear 21 has one surface coplanar with the rear surface 17 of an upright, the ear 20 has an edge coplanar with the front face 19 and the main portion 23 of the respective bracket 11 or 12 lies normal to the upper surface of the shelf 10 and in contact with the outer side wall 24 of the upright.
[0014] Each bracket is provided with a pair of holes 25 and the end of each shelf 10 can be secured to the brackets by respective fixings 26 (e.g. nuts and bolts) passing through the holes 25. Each bracket has a front ear 27 which is parallel to the ear 21 and contacts the front edge of the shelf 10.
[0015] Shelves pressed from metal sheet to have front (28) and side flanges (29) are preferred but timber, chipboard, plywood or plastics shelves, for example, can also be used.
[0016] Securing a shelf to its left- and right-hand brackets 11,12 is preferred, since adjustment of the position of the shelf 10 on the uprights 13 is rendered easier in that way.
[0017] Figure 5 shows that, since the transverse spacing between the face of ear 21 and the edge of ear 20 is equal to the width of the upright 13 between its front face 19 and its rear face 17, rocking the front of the bracket upwardly will release the tongue 22 from the aperture 18 in which it has been engaged allowing the shelf with its brackets to be moved along the uprights 13 to a new adjusted position. By suitably shaping the ears 21 and/or the spacer 16 it is also possible to ensure easy removal of a shelf/brackets assembly from the uprights 13 following this rocking movement. The length of each spacer 16 is chosen to allow the required rocking of the brackets 11, 12 on the uprights 13 to permit these adjustment to be made.
1. A wall-mounted adjustable shelf unit comprising shelves (10), brackets (11,12) to
support the shelves and at least one upright (13) adapted to be attached to the wall
(14) and provided with spaced-apart apertures (18), the brackets (11,12) engaging
in selected ones of the apertures (18) to support the brackets in a plurality of different
positions relative to the at least one upright (13), characterised in that the upright(s) (13) and brackets (11,12) are designed so that the apertures (18)
face the wall (14).
2. A shelf unit as claimed in claim 1, characterised in that there are two uprights (13) and two brackets (11, 12) for each shelf (10).
3. A shelf unit as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, characterised in that the or each upright (13) is of rectangular cross-section, the apertures (18) being
formed in a rear face thereof.
4. A shelf unit as claimed in any preceding claim, characterised in that the spaced-apart apertures (18) are slots intended to extend substantially horizontally
in use.
5. A shelf unit as claimed in any preceding claim, characterised in that each bracket (11,12) has two ears (20,21) designed to bear against opposite sides
of the or each upright (13) one ear (21) including a tongue (22) to enter a selected
one of the apertures (18).
6. A shelf unit as claimed in claim 5, characterised in that a main body portion of each bracket (11,12) lies in one plane and each of the two
ears (21,22) lies in a respective mutually perpendicular plane.
7. A shelf unit as claimed in claim 5 or claim 6, characterised in that the one ear (21) including a tongue (22) is parallel to a further ear (27) at the
other end of the bracket (11,12).
8. A shelf unit as claimed in any of claims 5 to 7 when dependent on claim 3, characterised in that a face of the one ear (21) which includes a tongue (22) bears flatly against the
rear face (17) of the upright (13) and the other ear (20) which engages a front face
(19) of the upright (13) bears edgewise on said front face (19).
9. A shelf unit as claimed in claim 8, characterised in that the transverse spacing between the face of the one ear (21) and the edge of the other
ear (22) substantially equals the width of the upright (13) between the front (19)
and rear (17) faces.
10. A shelf unit as claimed in any preceding claim, characterised in that each shelf (10) and each bracket (11,12) are provided with complementary holes (25)
to receive a screw-threaded fixing member (26) allowing each shelf (10) to be fixed
to its bracket(s) (11,12) and assembled to and disassembled from the upright(s) (13)
with its bracket(s) as a unit.
11. A kit of parts for making a shelf unit as claimed in any preceding claim, including
a pair of rectangular section slotted uprights (13), n shelves (10) and 2n brackets
(11,12), where n is a number between 2 and 10.