GB2083342A - Frames for fitted furniture - Google Patents

Abstract

A frame assembly for fitted furniture, for being fixed in position relative to an existing wall of a building, and comprising horizontal members extending between and interconnecting pairs of vertical members 10; wherein each horizontal member is connected to a vertical member 10 by a connector 14 which has a foot 44 of dove-tail cross-section fitting into a channel 34 of wider section at its base than the foot 44 of the attachment member 14, so that the attachment member can be withdrawn from the channel by turning it about a vertical axis to enable the horizontal members to be removed or repositioned without having to dismantle the whole frame assembly or move the vertical members 10; and wherein each attachment member 14 can be locked in position by means of a screw 50 engaging a groove 36 in the bottom of channel 34. The attachment member can slide vertically in the channel 34 when the screw 50 is loosened. The assembly also includes hinge attachment plates having dove-tail cross-section feet fitting in the channels 34. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Improvements in or relating to fitted furniture This invention relates to fitted furniture, and in particular to fitted furniture of the kind in which wardrobes, cupboards and the like are formed by a frame fixed in position relative to an existing wall of a building and panels extending between the frame and the wall.

United Kingdom patent specification 1 460 392 describes such a furniture construction system in which the frame is formed by an assembly of vertical bars interconnected by horizontal bars, the vertical and horizontal bars being joined together by attachment blocks. A disadvantage of this known system is that the attachment blocks cannot easily be removed from the vertical bars once the vertical bars are fixed in position in a building, so that it is not possible, for example, to replace a damaged horizontal bar, or to add or remove horizontal bars to modify the arrangement of cupboards, without dismantling the entire assembly.

It is an object of this invention to provide an improved system for the construction of fitted furniture.

According to this invention, there is provided a frame assembly for fitted furniture, comprising a plurality of vertical frame members and a plurality of horizontal frame members adapted to extend between and interconnect pairs of the vertical frame members, in which each vertical frame member has on at least one of its lateral faces a channel extending the length of the frame member and shaped to receive an attachment member fixed or adapted to be fixed to one end of a horizontal frame member, the cross-sectional shapes of the channel and attachment member being such that in a first orientation of the attachment member it can be withdrawn from the channel by movement in a horizontal plane, whereas in a second orientation it is held by engagement with the walls of the channel against withdrawal from the channel by movement in a horizontal plane whilst being free to slide along the channel, and locking means for retaining the attachment member in its second orientation and holding it against sliding movement.

Preferably, the channel and a co-operating portion of the attachment member have dovetail cross-sections, the width of the channel at its base being greater than the maximum width of the co-operating portion of the attachment member, to allow the attachment member to take up its first orientation.

Suitably, the locking means consists of at least one screw extending through a threaded bore in the attachment member so that it can project into the channel in the vertical frame member and engage the base of the channel.

Advantageously, each vertical frame member has a rearwardly opening channel in which a dividing panel can be located. The rearwardly opening channel preferably extends between two channels on the lateral faces of the vertical frame member. The assembly may also include anchor plates shaped to fit slidably into the rearwardly opening channel, by means of which the vertical frame member can be secured to the floor and ceiling of the room in which the fitted furniture is to be installed.

Preferably, the frame assembly also includes hinge attachment plates adapted to support hinges on which doors forming part of the furniture can be hung, each hinge attachment plate having a portion shaped to engage in the lateral channels in the vertical frame member in a similar manner to the above-mentioned attachment member, and being similarly provided with locking means to hold the hinge attachment plate in position on the vertical frame member.

Since the attachment members can be attached to and detached from the vertical frame members by movement of the attachment members in a horizontal plane, the invention enables each of the horizontal frame members to be removed from the frame assembly, or replaced, whilst the vertical frame members remained fixed in position.

The invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view, partly in section, of part of a frame assembly according to the invention, showing various components of the assembly connected to one another.

Figure 2 is a cross-section through a vertical frame member of the assembly, showing an attachment member in position on the vertical frame member, Figures 3, 4 and 5 are, respectively, a side elevation, front elevation and rear elevation of the attachment member, Figure 6 is a cross-section through a horizintal frame member of the assembly, Figure 7 is a plan view of a hinge attachment plate forming part of the assembly, Figures 8 and 9 are respectively front and rear elevations of the hinge attachment plate, Figure 10 is a plan view of an anchor plate forming part of the assembly, and Figure 11 is a fragmentary cross-section similar to Fig. 2, but showing the attachment member turned during its disconnection from the vertical frame member.

Referring to the drawings, a frame assembly for fitted furniture comprises a plurality of vertical frame members 10 and horizontal frame members 1 2 (only one of each being shown in the drawings), joined to one another by attachment members 14. Also connected to the vertical frame member 10 as shown in Fig. 1 are a hinge attachment plate 16, an anchor plate 1 8 and a beading strip 20. The various components are described in more detail below.

Each vertical frame member 10 consists of a length of aluminium extrusion. The front portion 22 of the extrusion consists of two parallel webs 24, at the forward edges of which are two inwardly extending flanges 26.

The rear portion of the extrusion is formed with a rearwardly opening channel 28, defined between parallel vertical faces 30, which is adapted to receive a panel forming part of the carcase of the furniture, as described below. At its closed end the channel 28 has two lateral recesses 32, which extend the length of the extrusion and which are shaped to receive complementary projections on the anchor plate 18, as described below.

The rear portion of the vertical frame member 10 is also formed with two channels 34 on opposite sides of the frame member, which are adapted to receive the attachment members 14 and hinge attachment plates 16.

Each channel 34 is generally dovetail-shaped in cross-section, the width of the channel at its mouth being less than the width at its base. Extending along the centre line of the base of each channel 34 is a groove 36.

It will be seen that the rearwardly-opening channel 28 is positioned between the two lateral channels 34, and that the arrangement is such as to reduce as far as possible the amount of metal in the frame member, whilst maintaining its strength and rigidity.

As shown in Figs. 2 to 5, the attachment member 1 4 is generally U-shaped, having two arms 38 extending from a base 40. Each arm 38 has a threaded bore 42, to enable the attachment member 14 to be fixed to a horizontal frame member 1 2 by means of screws 52 (see Fig. 1). The base 40 has an outwardly projecting portion 44 which is dovetail-shaped in cross-section so that it can fit within either of the channels 34 in the vertical frame member 10. Adjacent one side of the dovetail 44 the base 40 is "cut-away" by a recess 46. This enables the attachment member 14 to be turned, as shown in Fig. 11, so that one side of the dovetail 44 moves further into the channel 34 until the other side of the dovetail 44 clears the adjacent edge at the mouth of the channel 34, to enable the attachment member 14 to be withdrawn from the channel 34.The base 40 has a threaded bore 48 which receives a screw 50. As shown in Fig. 2, when the screw is turned so that it projects beyond the base 40, the end of the screw engages in the locating groove 36 in channel 34. As the screw 50 is tightened, the dovetail portion 44 of attachment member 14 is forced against the sides of the channel 34, so that the attachment member is held firmly in position. When the screw 50 is slackened, the attachment member 14 can slide freely in the channel 34.

As shown in Fig. 6, each horizontal frame member 12, which is a length of aluminium extrusion, consists essentially of a hollow section bar, the horizontal walls 54 and 56 of the bar extending rearwardly beyond the rear wall 58 to form flanges 60 and 62. At its junction with the front wall 64, the wall 56 is shaped to define, with a flange 66 forming an extension of front wall 64, a channel 68. The channel 68 is dimensioned to receive an infill panel (not shown), as described below. As shown in the drawings, the channel 68 opens downwards, but it will be apparent that the frame member 1 2 can be inverted so that the channel 68 opens upwards. The horizontal frame member 1 2 is formed at each end with two bores 70 in the flanges 60 and 62, to receive the screws 52 engaging that attachment member 14.The bores 70 are positioned so that, when the attachment member 1 4 is fixed to the horizontal frame member 12, the attachment member lies against the rear wall 58 of frame member 12, and, when the attachment member 14 is also locked in a channel 34 of a vertical frame member 10, the end of the horizontal frame member 1 2 abuts against the vertical frame member 1 2.

The relative dimensions of the vertical and horizontal frame members 10 and 1 2 are such that when they are connected together, as shown in Fig. 1, the front face of the vertical member 10, defined by the flanges 26 is aligned with the inner face 72 of the channel 68 in the horizontal member 12, so that a panel received in the channel 68 can extend over the front face of the vertical member 10.

Each hinge attachment plate 1 6 consists of a flat plate 74, formed integrally at its rear edge with a mounting foot 76 shaped to fit into one of the lateral channels 34 of the vertical frame member 10. The foot 76 thus has a dovetail cross-section similar to that of the base 44 of the attachment member 14, except that, for ease of manufacture, the front part of the dovetail is provided only in two portions 78 formed adjacent cut-away apertures 80 in the plate 74, the front face 82 of the remainder of foot 76 being perpendicular to the plate 74. The foot 76 is shaped so that it can be inserted into and withdrawn from the channel 34 by turning the hinge attachment plate 1 6 about a vertical axis, in similar manner to the attachment member 14. The foot 76 has two threaded bores 84 which receive grub-screws 86 (Fig. 1). The grubscrews 86, when tightened, engage in the central groove 36 of channel 34 so as to lock the hinge attachment plate 1 6 in position, with the plate 74 lying flat against the side of the vertical frame member 1 0.

The hinge plate 1 6 is adapted to support a cabinet hinge of well-known type. To this end, a locating projection 88 is formed on the front face of the hinge plate, and a threaded bore 90 is adapted to receive a screw by means of which the hinge can be secured to the hinge plate. Additional holes 91 are provided to receive further securing screws if necessary, e.g. if particular heavy doors are to be used.

Each anchor plate 1 8 consists of a generally flat plate the front portion 92 of which is shaped to fit into the channel 28 in the vertical frame member 1 0. Two lateral projections 94 at the end of the plate engage in the recesses 32 in channel 28 to hold the plate against withdrawal from channel 28. The rear portion 96 of the anchor plate 1 6 is provided with holes 98 to receive screws by means of which the anchor plate can be fixed to the floor or ceiling of the room in which the furniture is to be fitted.

The decorative beading 20 consists of a length of extruded PVC. The beading has two rearwardly extending legs 100, each ending in a flange 102 which can engage under one of the flanges 26 of the vertical frame member, to hold the beading in place. The legs 100 are flexible, so that the beading can be snap-fitted into position. Two outwardly extending flanges 104 of the beading abut against the outer faces of flanges 26, each flange being shaped to provide a front face 106 which, in the assembly, is coplanar with the front face 64 of each horizontal frame member 1 2 and a side face 108 which is coplanar with the adjacent side face of the vertical frame member 10.

In assembly of fitted furniture employing the described frame, the appropriate number of vertical frame members 10 are cut to the required length, and are then connected together by horizontal frame members 1 2. The frame is placed in position, and anchor plates 18, previously inserted into the channel 28 of each vertical frame member, are screwed to the floor and ceiling. A dividing panel (not shown) of chipboard or other suitable material is positioned in the channel 28 of each vertical frame member 10 so as to extend between the frame member and the wall against which the furniture is to be fitted and is secured to the wall, e.g. by means of brackets. Each panel may be additionally secured to the vertical frame member by means of screws passing through pilot holes drilled through the base of the channel 28.An infill panel, to extend from the ceiling to the uppermost horizontal frame members 12, is cut to the required size, and fitted into the channels 68 of the horizontal frame members, the panel being also fixed to the ceiling by suitable brackets. A skirting panel is similarly cut, to extend from the floor to the lowermost horizontal frame members, the skirting panel fitting into the channel 68 in the horizontal frame members. During the fitting of the infill and skirting panels, the position of the horizontal frame members 1 2 can be adjusted by loosening the screws 50 so that the attachment members 14 can slide in the channels 34, the screws being finally re-tightened to lock the frame members in position.The hinge plates 1 6 are then inserted into channels 34 and locked in the channels as described above, after being adjusted in position to receive the hinges attached to the doors to be hung on the frame assembly. The beading 20 is cut to length, parts being cut away as necessary to allow the beading to fit over the infill and skirting panels, and is snapped into position on the vertical frame members 10.

Panels forming the floors of the cupboards and shelves are suspended between the horizontal frame members 1 2 and the wall of the room. In addition, other components, such as drawer units, of conventional construction, can be attached to the dividing panels.

Since the attachment members 1 4 and the hinge plates 1 6 can be removed and reinserted from the channels 34, without having to move the frame members 10 from their fixed position, it is possible to remove or reposition individual ones of the horizontal frame members 12, or to remove doors, without dismantling the whole frame assembly.

This makes it relatively simple, for example, to replace a broken hinge or damaged shelf panel, or to modify the arrangement of cupboards by repositioning or removing existing horizontal frame members or by adding additional frame members.

The vertical and horizontal frame members may be provided with a suitable decorative coating.

Since the vertical and horizontal frame members are hollow, they may be used to accommodate electric cables, for example to provide a supply to light fittings installed in the furniture.

In place of the PVC beading 20, various other decorative profiles could be provided to fit onto the vertical frame members. The decorative profiles could be made in any suitable material, such as plastics, wood or chipboard.

Claims (8)

1. A frame assembly for fitted furniture, comprising a plurality of vertical frame members and a plurality of horizontal frame members adapted to extend between and interconnect pairs of the vertical frame members, in which each vertical frame member has on at least one of its lateral faces a channel extending the length of the frame member and shaped to receive an attachment member fixed or adapted to be fixed to one end of a horizontal frame member, the cross-sectional shapes of the channel and attachment member being such that in a first orientation of the attachment member it can be withdrawn from the channel by movement in a horizontal plane, whereas in a second orientation it is held by engagement with the walls of the channel against withdrawal from the channel by movement in a horizontal plane whilst being free to slide along the channel, and locking means for retaining the attachment member in its second orientation and holding it against sliding movement.

2. A frame assembly as claimed in claim 1, in which the channel and a co-operating portion of the attachment member have dovetail cross-sections, the width of the channel at its base being greater than the maximum width of the co-operating portion of the attachment member, to allow the attachment member to take up its first orientation.

3. A frame assembly as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, in which the locking means consists of at least one screw extending through a threaded bore in the attachment member so that it can project into the channel in the vertical frame member and engage the base of the channel.

4. A frame assembly as claimed in any preceding claim, in which each vertical frame member has a rearwardly opening channel in which a dividing panel can be located.

5. A frame assembly as claimed in claim 4, in which the rearwardly opening channel extends between two channels on the lateral faces of the vertical frame member.

6. A frame assembly as claimed in claim 4 or claim 5 and including anchor plates shaped to fit slidably into the rearwardly opening channel, by means of which the vertical frame member can be secured to the floor and ceiling of the room in which the fitted furniture is to be installed.

7. A frame assembly as claimed in any preceding claim and including hinge attachment plates adapted to support hinges on which doors forming part of the furniture can be hung, each hinge attachment plate having a portion shaped to engage in the lateral channels in the vertical frame member in a similar manner to each said attachment member, and being similarly provided with locking means to hold the hinge attachment plate in position on the vertical frame member.

8. Fitted furniture comprising a frame assembly as claimed in any preceding claim and panels for connection to the vertical and horizontal frame members.