Abstract:
An adjustable shelf system includes a shelf capable of being moved from a first position slidably mounted within a first pair of track members to a second position slidably mounted within a second pair of track members without being completely removed from said first and second pair of track members. A method is also disclosed.

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD  
       [0001]     The present invention generally relates to an adjustable shelf system. More particularly, the invention relates to a shelf capable of being moved from a first position slidably mounted within a first pair of track members to a second position slidably mounted within a second pair of track members without being completely removed from the first and second pair of track members.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     It has been commonplace in the automotive industry to provide a compartmental area for the stowage and transportation of cargo, such as, for example, groceries, golf clubs, and the like. Compartmental stowage areas for sedan-type vehicles have typically included a trunk, which is isolated from the passenger compartment area of the vehicle. Recently, with the popularity of sport utility vehicles (SUVs) and minivans, the compartmental stowage area for the vehicle may often include a load floor of the passenger compartment.  
         [0003]     Although adequate for most situations, removable, adjustable, or permanent seating configurations of a vehicle may not permit a vehicle operator to maximize the stowage potential about the load floor. For example, if a family of six were to occupy the vehicle at one time, it may not be possible to remove or reconfigure the seating to increase the stowage capacity about the load floor. As such, a need exists for improving compartmental stowage areas within a vehicle.  
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0004]     The inventors of the present invention have recognized these and other problems associated with conventional vehicular cargo stowage. The present invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:  
         [0005]      FIG. 1  is a cutaway exploded view of an adjustable shelf system according to an embodiment of the invention;  
         [0006]      FIG. 2A  is a top view of the shelf according to  FIG. 1  illustrating a pair of roller elements and two locking pins in an extended position according to an embodiment of the invention;  
         [0007]      FIG. 2B  is a top view of the shelf according of  FIG. 2A  when the pairs of roller elements and locking pins are in a retracted position according to an embodiment of the invention;  
         [0008]      FIG. 3  is a rear perspective view of a vehicle illustrating an application of an adjustable shelf system with a shelf located in a first stowed position according to an embodiment of the invention;  
         [0009]      FIG. 4A  is a top view of the shelf according to  FIG. 3  illustrating pairs of roller elements and locking pins in an extended position according to an embodiment of the invention;  
         [0010]      FIG. 4B  is a top view of the shelf according of  FIG. 4A  when the pairs of roller elements and locking pins are in a retracted position according to an embodiment of the invention;  
         [0011]      FIG. 5  is a perspective view of the adjustable shelf system according to  FIG. 3  being slidably adjusted from the first stowed position according to an embodiment of the invention;  
         [0012]      FIG. 6  is a perspective view of the adjustable shelf system according to  FIG. 5  being pivotably adjusted about a first axis traversly extending through a front pair of roller elements according to an embodiment of the invention;  
         [0013]      FIG. 7  is a perspective view of the adjustable shelf system according to  FIG. 6  being pivotably adjusted about a second axis traversly extending through an intermediate pair of roller elements according to an embodiment of the invention;  
         [0014]      FIG. 8  is a perspective view of the adjustable shelf system according to  FIG. 7  being slidably adjusted to a second stowed position according to an embodiment of the invention; and  
         [0015]      FIG. 9  is a rear perspective view of the vehicle illustrating the adjustable shelf system according to  FIG. 8  located in a second stowed position according to an embodiment of the invention. 
     
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0016]     The above described disadvantages are overcome and a number of advantages are realized by an inventive adjustable shelf system, which is seen generally at  10  in  FIGS. 1, 2  and  8 . In general, the adjustable shelf system  10  generally comprises a shelf  12  including any desirable thickness, T, length, L, and width, W. The shelf  12  may be solid, hollowed, and, if desired, may include a painted, textured, or fabric surface. According to one aspect of the invention illustrated in  FIG. 1 , the shelf  12  is slidably and pivotably adjustable between two opposing substantially parallel surfaces  14   a ,  14   b . As illustrated in  FIGS. 1-2B , the shelf  12  includes at least one pair of roller elements, which is indicated generally at  16   a , that are slidably received within a plurality of pairs of track members, which are indicated generally at  18   a ,  18   b ,  18   c . The pairs of track members  18   a - 18   c  are opposingly located about inboard surfaces  20  of each of the opposing substantially parallel surfaces  14   a ,  14   b . If desired, the pairs of track members  18   a - 18   c  may be disposed within recesses formed in each of the opposing substantially parallel surfaces  14   a ,  14   b . It will be appreciated that the invention is not limited by the number of pairs of roller members  16   a  and track members  18   a - 18   c , and that the invention can be practiced with any desirable number of roller members  16   a  and track members  18   a - 18   c.    
         [0017]     Although there are many applications for the shelf system  10  of the invention, one application of the invention is illustrated in  FIGS. 3 through 9 , in which the adjustable shelf system  10  is mounted in a passenger compartment area, P, of a vehicle, V. When proportioned to the size of the passenger compartment area, P, the shelf  12  may be relatively heavy and/or cumbersome. As such, according to one aspect of the invention, the adjustable shelf system  10  is designed to permit an operator, O ( FIGS. 4-7 ), to leverage the shelf  12  about a pair of roller elements, which are identified at reference numeral  16   b , when the shelf  12  is selectively positioned from a first stowed position ( FIG. 2 ) to a second stowed position ( FIG. 8 ), and vice-versa. In describing the operation of the adjustable shelf system  10  according to the embodiment illustrated in  FIGS. 3-9 , the opposing substantially parallel surfaces  14   a ,  14   b  are hereinafter referred to as vehicular quarter panels  14   a ,  14   b.    
         [0018]     Referring to  FIGS. 2A, 2B ,  3 A, and  3 B, the shelf  12  may include one or more passages or openings  22  that a define handle member  24  having an optional lever  26 . According to an embodiment of the invention, when the operator, O, grips and applies pressure to the optional levers  26 , one or more of the pairs of roller elements  16   a - 16   c  and/or pairs of optional locking pins  28   a ,  28   b  may be retracted inboard in the direction of the arrows, R. As such, if the shelf  12  is a hollow member, the shelf  12  may include internally-located spring members (not shown) to outboard bias the pairs of roller elements  16   a - 16   c  and/or pairs of optional locking pins  28   a ,  28   b . Referring to  FIGS. 1 and 3 , when biased outboard, the pairs of roller elements  16   a  are received by the pairs of track members  18   a - 18   c , and the pairs of optional locking pins  28   a ,  28   b  are received by optional bores  30  formed in the pairs of track members  18   a ,  18   b  and/or quarter panels  14   a ,  14   b  to positively lock the shelf  12  in place. It will be appreciated that the levers  26 , the locking pins  28   a ,  28   b  are optional and may be omitted. In addition, the invention can be practiced without retractable pairs of roller elements  16   a.    
         [0019]     The pairs of track members  18   a ,  18   b  are each formed to define a generally C-shaped channel in cross-section. As illustrated, the track members  18   a ,  18   b  are located within a generally correspondingly-shaped recess formed in each quarter panel  14   a ,  14   b . However, it will be appreciated that the pairs of track members  18   a ,  18   b  may be eliminated, and, if desired, and the pairs of roller elements  16   a - 16   c  may directly communicate with the pairs of recesses formed in the quarter panels  14   a ,  14   b . In addition, it will be appreciated that the pairs of track members  18   a ,  18   b  are not limited to being generally C-shape in cross-section and that any desirable cross-sectional shape may be utilized, such as T, H, I, or the like. In an alternate embodiment shown in  FIGS. 3 and 5 - 9 , each of the quarter panels  14   a ,  14   b  may include an arcuate-shaped track member  18   d  respectively located in a corresponding arcuate-shaped recess in each quarter panel  14   a ,  14   b , rather than the generally linear track member  18   c  shown in  FIG. 1 .  
         [0020]     In describing the deployment of the shelf  12  shown in  FIGS. 5-8 , the pairs of roller elements  16   a ,  16   b ,  16   c  are hereinafter referred to as a front pair of roller elements  16   a , an intermediate pair of roller elements  16   b , and a rear pair of roller elements  16   c . Referring to  FIG. 5 , the operator, O, grips the handle members  24  and slides the shelf  12  in the direction of arrow, D 1 , such that the shelf  12  partially extends out from the passenger compartment area, P, of the vehicle, V. As illustrated, the shelf  12  is positioned such that the intermediate pair of roller elements  16   b  are no longer being supported by the first pairs of track member  18   a . Then, as shown in  FIG. 6 , the shelf  12  is pivoted upwardly in the direction of arrow, D 2 , about a first axis, A 1 , which passes through the front pair of roller elements  16   a  located in the first pair of track members  18   a , such that the intermediate pair of roller elements  16   b  may be received in and supported by the second pair of track members  18   b . When pivoted about the first axis, A 1 , the shelf  12  can be easily lifted because the weight of the shelf  12  is leveraged by the front pair of roller elements  16   a.    
         [0021]     Referring to  FIG. 7 , the shelf  12  is pivoted downwardly in the direction of arrow, D 3 , about a second axis, A 2 , which passes through the intermediate pair of roller elements  16   b  located in the second pair of track members  18   b , such that the front pair of roller elements  16   a  may be guided through the pair of arcuate track member  18   d  for reception and slidable support by the second pair of track members  18   b . When pivoted about the second axis, A 2 , the weight of the shelf  12  is leveraged by the intermediate pair of roller elements  16   b . As such, when raising the shelf  12  from the first pair of track members  18   a  to the second pair of track members  18   b , the intermediate pair of roller elements  16   b  provide a point of leverage to assist an operator in selectively positioning the shelf. In an alternate embodiment of the invention, each of the quarter panels  14   a ,  14   b  may not include the arcuate track members  18   d  and arcuate recesses; as such, to permit movement of the shelf  12  in the direction of the arrow, D 3 , the operator, O, may grip and apply pressure to the optional levers  26  to retract the front pair of roller elements  16   a  in the direction of the arrow, R, as described above.  
         [0022]     Referring to  FIG. 8 , upon fully pivoting the shelf  12  in the direction of arrow, D 3 , such that the shelf  12  lies in the plane of the second pair of track members  18   b , the shelf  12  can be slid forward in the direction of arrow, D 4 , such that the shelf  12  can be fully stowed back into the passenger compartment area, P, of the vehicle, V. When located in the second stowed position as shown in  FIG. 9 , the shelf  12  is raised above the load floor, which is shown generally at  100 , at a height, H. Oppositively, the shelf  12  can be lowered from the second stowed position to the first stowed position by performing the above-described steps in reverse order.  
         [0023]     As illustrated in  FIG. 3 , when the shelf  12  is located in the first stowed position, the shelf  12  is positioned adjacent a generally planar surface defining the load floor  100 . However, if desired, the load floor  100  may include a depth (not shown) approximately equal to the thickness, T, of the shelf  12 . As such, the shelf  12  may be stowed in the first position within the load floor  100  rather than adjacent a flush surface defining the load floor  100 . In yet another alternative embodiment, the load floor  100  may include a depth (not shown) approximately equal a thickness, T*X, such that the depth may accommodate and store any desirable number (X) of shelves  12 . However, if multiple shelves  12  are included in the design of the invention, the multiple shelves  12  may be stacked upon each other adjacent the generally planar surface defining the load floor  100 .  
         [0024]     Although three pairs of roller elements  16   a - 16   c  and three pairs of track members  18   a ,  18   b ,  18   d  are shown in the illustrated embodiment in  FIGS. 3-9 , any desirable number of pairs of roller elements  16   a - 16   c  and track members  18   a ,  18   b ,  18   d  may be included in the design of the adjustable shelf system  10 . Even further, although the adjustable shelf system  10  is shown to include a single shelf  12  being slidably and pivotably deployed about the track members  18   a ,  18   b ,  18   d  and/or recesses, it will be appreciated that the invention may be practiced with a plurality of shelves  12  that are slidably and pivotably deployed about any desirable number of pairs of track members  18   a ,  18   b ,  18   d  and/or recesses to achieve multi-tiered shelving and/or shelving extending from the rear-most area of the passenger compartment, P, to the forward-most area of the passenger compartment, P, proximate the driver and navigator location when additional seating, such as, for example, second and third row seating, is removed, reconfigured, or stowed to the load floor of the vehicle, V. It will be appreciated that the adjustable shelf system  10  is not limited to a vehicular application as illustrated in  FIGS. 3-9 , and that the adjustable shelf system  10  may be used in any desirable application, such as, for example, a kitchen cabinet, a refrigerator, an oven, an entertainment center, or the like.  
         [0025]     The present invention has been described with reference to certain exemplary embodiments thereof. However, it will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art that it is possible to embody the invention in specific forms other than those of the exemplary embodiments described above. This may be done without departing from the spirit of the invention. The exemplary embodiments are merely illustrative and should not be considered restrictive in any way. The scope of the invention is defined by the appended claims and their equivalents, rather than by the preceding description.