Abstract:
A rack conversion system mounts to an existing storage rack and includes lateral tracks for side to side movement of forward bins and longitudinal tracks for front to rear movement of rear bins. The bins are sized to efficiently store a particular item, for example, paper files. The forward bins are movable side to side along the lateral tracks and reside in front of the rear bin. The rear bins are moveable front to rear along the longitudinal tracks and are normally positioned to the rear to allow the side to side movement of the forward bins. The lateral tracks are preferably mounted below the forward bins and do not interfere with the movement of the rear bins, and the longitudinal tracks are preferably mounted above the rear bins and do not interfere with movement of the forward bins.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to document storage and in particular to a system for converting bulk storage racks into an efficient file storage system. 
     It is often desirable, or even legally or contractually required, to store items such as documents, equipment, articles, and the like which may be required in the future. Long term storage facilities are available for storing such items and generally include vast arrays of storage racks, often to great heights. An example of a known document box storage rack  10  is shown in  FIG. 1 , with shelves absent to provide a clear view. The rack  10  includes vertical supports  12 , lateral supports  14 , and longitudinal supports  16 . Generally, the shelves in such racking are designed for general storage and are of a size and spaces apart vertically to allow various size boxes to be stacked vertically, laterally, and longitudinally on the shelves. While such shelving provides a versatile storage capacity, it is inefficient for storage of common paper files which fit into a small known number of volumes. Storing paper files in boxes stacked on the shelves also results in difficulty in recovering papers which may be in boxes stacked behind and under other boxes. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention addresses the above and other needs by providing a rack conversion system which mounts to an existing storage rack and includes lateral tracks for side to side movement of forward bins and longitudinal tracks for front to rear movement of rear bins. The bins are sized to efficiently store a particular item, for example, paper files. The forward bins are movable side to side along the lateral tracks and reside in front of the rear bin. The rear bins are moveable front to rear along the longitudinal tracks and are normally positioned to the rear to allow the side to side movement of the forward bins. The lateral tracks are preferably mounted below the forward bins and do not interfere with the movement of the rear bins, and the longitudinal tracks are preferably mounted above the rear bins and do not interfere with movement of the forward bins. The rack conversion according to the present invention thus allows conversion of known storage racks to efficiently store and retrieve stored material thereby substantially improving known storage systems by as much as 67 percent by allowing easy and direct access to any box in up to three rows of boxes versus a single row of boxes. 
     In accordance with one aspect of the invention, there is provided a rack system including a storage rack frame, longitudinal supports, lateral tracks, and three lateral rows of bins. The storage rack frame includes at least four spaced apart uprights, each residing approximately vertically and forming a rectangle, and at least two pairs of lateral beams longitudinally spaced apart and approximately parallel. The pairs of lateral beams are supported by the uprights and reside in an approximately horizontal plane and each lateral beam has a groove in an upper inside edge. Decks normally used for storing material are supported by the shoulders in the lateral beams and four longitudinally spaced apart lateral tracks are mounted above each deck to carry two rows of laterally sliding forward bins. A multiplicity of pairs of longitudinal supports are carried under the lateral beams and each pair of longitudinal supports carries a rear bin. The bins have a bin width W and include two rows of the number N minus one of the forward bins and one row of the number N of the rear bins. The bins preferably have a depth of approximately the height of letter size paper folders. The positions of the lateral tracks are preferably longitudinally adjustable to allow room for letter or legal size folders. The forward bins slidably cooperate above respective lateral tracks to allow lateral movement of the forward bins within each of their respective rows and the row of rear bins normally resides behind the two rows of forward bins. The total width of the rows of forward bins, the number N, and the widths of the individual forward bins are selected to allow access to the rear bins by laterally sliding adjacent forward bins apart. Additionally, the longitudinal supports may be longitudinal tracks allowing the rear bins to move forward and rearward between separated adjacent forward bins. 
     In accordance with another embodiment of the invention, there is provided a rack system with the lateral tracks above the respective forward bins and longitudinal tracks below the respective rear bins. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING 
       The above and other aspects, features and advantages of the present invention will be more apparent from the following more particular description thereof, presented in conjunction with the following drawings wherein: 
         FIG. 1A  is a bare prior art storage rack. 
         FIG. 1B  is the prior art storage rack with decks and boxes stored on the decks. 
         FIG. 2  is a storage rack with lateral tracks according to the present invention carried by decks supported by lateral beams. 
         FIG. 3  is a perspective view of a forward bin according to the present invention, configured to slidably cooperate with the lateral tracks. 
         FIG. 4  is a perspective view of a rear bin according to the present invention, configured to slidably cooperate with longitudinal tracks. 
         FIG. 5A  is a front view of one of the forward bins. 
         FIG. 5B  is a side view of one of the forward bins carried on the lateral tracks. 
         FIG. 5C  is a top view of one of the forward bins. 
         FIG. 6  is an end view of one of the lateral tracks having a “C” shaped profile to prevent tipping. 
         FIG. 7A  is a front view of one of the rear bins carried on the longitudinal tracks. 
         FIG. 7B  is a side view of one of the rear bins. 
         FIG. 7C  is a bottom view of one of the rear bins. 
         FIG. 8  is an end view of one of the longitudinal tracks. 
         FIG. 9  is a top view of the lateral tracks and lateral beams. 
         FIG. 10  is an end view of the lateral tracks attached to the deck supported by the lateral beams. 
         FIG. 11A  is a front view of the longitudinal tracks attached to a longitudinal track assembly. 
         FIG. 11B  is a top view of the longitudinal tracks attached to the longitudinal track assembly. 
         FIG. 11C  is an end view of the longitudinal tracks attached to the longitudinal track assembly attached between a pair of lateral beams. 
         FIG. 12A  is a top view of a possible orientation of the forward and rear bins according to the present invention. 
         FIG. 12B  shows a top view of the forward and rear bins with forward bins in a first row moved to provide access to a rear bin. 
         FIG. 12C  shows the rear bin moved forward for better access. 
         FIG. 13  is a method for converting know storage racks according to the present invention. 
     
    
    
     Corresponding reference characters indicate corresponding components throughout the several views of the drawings. 
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     The following description is of the best mode presently contemplated for carrying out the invention. This description is not to be taken in a limiting sense, but is made merely for the purpose of describing one or more preferred embodiments of the invention. The scope of the invention should be determined with reference to the claims. 
     The present invention comprises apparatus for converting existing storage racks into an efficient file storage system. An example of a known storage rack  10  is shown in  FIG. 1A , with decks absent to provide a clear view of uprights  12 , lateral beams  14 , longitudinal braces  16 , and diagonal braces  17 . The uprights  12  comprise at least four uprights and are approximately vertical and form a rectangle. A storage rack system  10  may be extended and include a large number of uprights  12  to fill a large warehouse. The lateral beams  14  are longitudinally spaced apart pairs, approximately parallel, and supported by the uprights defining an approximately horizontal plane (i.e., at the same height). The lateral beams  14  are generally the load bearing element of the rack system  10 , and the longitudinal braces  16  and diagonal braces  17  hold the uprights  12  in the vertical position. 
     The prior art storage rack  10  with decks  11 , and boxes  13  stored on the decks  11 , is shown in  FIG. 1B . The lateral beams  14  include stepped shoulders  40  (see  FIG. 10 ) on inside upper edges of the beams  14  to support the decks  11 . Such stepped shoulders  40  are common on known beams  14  used with rack systems and are provided to position and support the decks  11 , perforated decks, and the like, commonly used with rack systems  10 . Unfortunately, the prior art storage rack  10  often results in inefficient use of space and/or difficulty in accessing boxes which have been pushed to the rear. 
     A storage rack  10  with lateral tracks  20  according to the present invention, supported by decks  11  (see  FIG. 1B ), is shown in  FIG. 2 . The present invention advantageously uses the existing decks  11  to avoid major modifications to the storage rack  10 . The lateral tracks  20  preferably comprise two pairs of lateral tracks  20  for carrying two rows of laterally sliding forward bins  18   a  (see  FIG. 3 ) above the lateral tracks  20 . 
       FIG. 3  is a perspective view of the forward bin  18   a  according to the present invention configured to slidably cooperate with lateral tracks  20 . The lateral tracks  20  are shown below the bin  18   a , but may also be above the bin  18   a . The bin  18   a  may includes the internal struts  19  for additional strength. 
     A perspective view of a rear bin  18   b  according to the present invention, configured to slidably cooperate with longitudinal tracks  24  (see  FIGS. 6 and 7A ), is shown in  FIG. 4 . The longitudinal tracks  24  are shown above the bin  18   b , but may also be below the bin  18   b . The bin  18   a  may includes internal struts  19  for additional strength. 
     A front view of the forward bin  18   a  is shown in  FIG. 5A , a side view of the forward bin  18   a  is shown in  FIG. 5B , and a top view of the forward bin  18   a  is shown in  FIG. 5C . The bin  18   a  preferably includes 2 shelves  17  dividing the bin  18   a  into three vertical storage spaces. The three storage spaces have heights H 1 , H 2 , and H 3  which are all preferably approximately ten inches. The overall height H 4  of the bin  18   a  is preferably approximately 30 inches. The width W 1  of the bin  18   a  is preferably approximately 16 inches and the depth D of the bin  18   a  is preferably approximately 11 inches. Four rollers (or wheels)  22  are attached to front and rear bottom corners of the bin  18   a  to carry the bin  18   a  on the lateral tracks  20 . An end view of the lateral track  20  supporting the bins  18   a  is seen in  FIG. 5B , and a detailed end view of the lateral track  20  alone is shown in  FIG. 6 . Bumpers  23  reside on bottom corners of opposing sides  21  of the bins  18   a  to prevent direct metal to metal contact of adjacent bins  18   a.    
     A front view of the rear bin  18   b  is shown in  FIG. 7A , a side view of the rear bin  18   b  is shown in  FIG. 7B , and a top view of the rear bin  18   b  is shown in  FIG. 7C . The bin  18   b  preferably includes 2 shelves  17  dividing the bin  18   b  into three vertical storage spaces. The rear bin  18   b  has a depth D 2  of preferably 11 inches to accept letter or legal size folders, and a width W 2  which is preferably approximately the same width as the forward bins  18   a . The heights of the rear bin  18   a  are preferably the same as the forward bin  18   a . The rear bins  18   b  are preferably slidably supported by the longitudinal tracks  24  as shown in  FIG. 7A . Rollers (or wheels)  26  are attached to rails  28  mounted to the top 30 of the rear bin  18   b . The rails  28  preferably extend to the fronts  33  of the bin  18   b  and bumpers  30  are attached to forward ends of the rails  28  to prevent or reduce damage to the bin  18   b  from forward impact, for example, with a lateral beam  14 . Rounded or angled guides  32  are preferably attached to bottom corners of the front  33  of the of the bin  18   b  to facilitate the bin  18   b  sliding between separated adjacent pairs of the forward bins  18   a . The guides  32  are positioned and shaped to urge the forward bins further apart to allow the rear bin  18   b  to slide between the forward bins. A detailed end view of one of the longitudinal tracks  24  is shown in  FIG. 8 . 
     In another embodiment the rear bins  18   b  are stationary and are fixedly attached to the longitudinal supports replacing the longitudinal tracks  24 . 
     A top view of the lateral tracks  20  and mounting apparatus comprising mounting plates  34 , adjusting slots  36 , and fasteners  38  according to the present invention, and the lateral beams  14 , are shown in  FIG. 9 , and an end view of the lateral tracks  20  are shown in  FIG. 10 . The tracks  20  are attached to the mounting plates  34 . Each mounting plate  34  has a pair of adjusting slots  36 . The fasteners  38  pass through the adjusting slots  36 , through the deck  11 , and connect to backing apparatus  42  under the deck  11  to sandwich the deck  11  thereby fixing the position of the lateral tracks  20 . The backing apparatus  42  may be nuts, washers and nuts, plates with threaded holes, plates with nuts attached, or any other apparatus allowing the deck  11  to be sandwiched to fix the position of the lateral tracks  20 . The lateral tracks  20  also include disassembly notches  20   a  allowing the front bins  18   a  to be removed from the tracks. 
     The slots  36  are provided to allow pairs of the lateral tracks  20  to be moved longitudinally to adjust for storage of letter or legal size material. For example, to move a first pair of lateral tracks back approximately three inches and to move a second pair of lateral tracks behind the first pair of lateral tracks back approximately six inches, thereby providing a space for legal size material to extend out the fronts of both rows of the forward bins. Either or both pairs of the lateral tracks may be moved to allow appropriate storage. The default depths and positions of the forward bins  18   a  is for letter size material to minimize the reach to the rear bins  18   b.    
     The pairs of lateral tracks  20  are advantageously supported by the existing decks  11  residing in the existing stepped shoulders  40  in the lateral beams  14 , and thus may be easily used to modify existing storage racks  10  (see  FIGS. 1A and 1B ). 
     A front view of the longitudinal tracks  24  attached to a longitudinal track assembly are shown in  FIG. 11A , a top view of the longitudinal tracks  24  attached to the longitudinal track assembly are shown in  FIG. 11B , and an end view of the longitudinal tracks  24  attached to the longitudinal track assembly attached between a pair of lateral beams  14  are shown in  FIG. 11C . The longitudinal tracks  24  are attached between bars  44  and the bars  44  are attached to lower inside edges of the lateral beams  14 . While longitudinally moving rear bins  18   b  are preferred, an embodiment with stationary rear bins  18   b  provides advantages over known storage racks, and such stationary embodiment may simply include the rear bins  18   b  bolted to the decks  11  behind the forward bins  18   a.    
     A top view of a possible orientation of the forward bins  18   a  and rear bins  18   b  according to the present invention is shown in  FIG. 12A , a top view of the forward bins  18   a  and rear bins  18   b  with forward bins  18   a  in a first row A moved to provide access to one of the rear bins  18   b  is shown in  FIG. 12B , and the rear bin  18   b  is shown moved forward for better access in  FIG. 12C . 
     A method for converting know storage racks according to the present invention is described in  FIG. 13 . The method includes the steps of attaching two pairs of lateral tracks to top surfaces of decks of storage rack frames, the tracks positioned on an approximately front two-thirds of the decks at step  100 , attaching N pairs of longitudinal tracks under the decks at step  102 , engaging a number N of rear bins to the N pairs longitudinal tracks to allow front to rear motion of the rear bins at step  104 , engaging a number N−1 of forward bins to each of the pairs of lateral tracks to allow side to side of the forward bins at step  106 , and sliding adjacent pairs of the forward bins apart to allow individual ones of the rear bins to slide forward to store and retrieve material in the rear bins at step  108 . 
     The bins have been depicted herein as formed of solid sheet metal. In some applications a requirement exists to use a perforated material to allow water to pass through the bins as a fire control requirement. Also, the bins may alternatively be constructed from metal, preferable steel rod. Such steel rod construction meets the fire control requirements and may reduce weights and cost. The steel rod bins may also be constructed to fold into a compact unit for shipping and thereby reduce shipping costs. 
     While the invention herein disclosed has been described by means of specific embodiments and applications thereof, numerous modifications and variations could be made thereto by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the invention set forth in the claims.