Patent ID: 7644552
Filing Date: 2010-01-12
Classification: E04B

Abstract:
1. In an office furniture arrangement having an office furniture component which is positionable in an office area, said office furniture component including a weight-bearing support structure positionable in the office area and a glass panel assembly mounted to said support structure wherein said support structure orients said glass panel assembly relative to a floor of said office area and permits viewing of said glass panel assembly from an exterior of said office furniture component, comprising the improvement wherein said glass panel assembly comprises a sheet of glass defined by a peripheral glass edge and opposite glass faces extending between said glass edge which said glass faces define a thickness of said sheet of glass, said glass panel assembly further including an edge frame which is joined to said peripheral glass edge wherein said edge frame removably connects to said support structure and said edge frame carries the weight of the sheet of glass, said edge frame including an elongate rigid edge rail which extends along said glass edge and rigidly supports said sheet of glass along said glass edge, said edge rail including an elongate fixing channel which extends parallel to and opens toward said glass edge wherein said glass edge is received within said fixing channel, said fixing channel including opposite channel walls which are spaced apart to define a channel opening that is proximate to but is narrower than said thickness of said glass, said channel walls extending generally parallel to said opposite glass faces and being formed of a rigid wall material which defines rigid opposing interior wall surfaces that are rigid and respectively contact said opposite glass faces of said sheet of glass, at least one of said channel walls being resiliently deflectable so as to be deflected by insertion of said glass edge in said channel opening wherein said glass faces are in tight-fitting compressive contact by the rigid opposing interior wall surfaces of said deflectable channel wall and the other of said channel walls to thereby join said sheet of glass to said edge rail.