Patent Publication Number: US-6340214-B1

Title: Safety shelf

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     This invention relates to a shelf assembly in general and more specifically one that can be pulled down to obtain access to items on the shelf. 
     2. Description of the Prior Art 
     There have been numerous attempts made to gain access to contents of a shelf that is out of reach of a person. Some of the related patents are: 
     U.S. Pat. No. 589,318 to Tabb describes a removable shelf in case of fire, flood or other emergencies. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 2,258,838 to Aldeen describes a chest that has a tray that moves up when the chest is open. Today&#39;s jewelry chest has this type of tray. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,308,158 to Vogelgesang et al describes a pull down shelf assembly that is spring biased which assists in returning the shelf to the up position. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,462,347 to Vogelgesang describes a pull down shelf assembly using a different spring biased from U.S. Pat. No. 5,308,158 which also assists in returning a shelf to the up position. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 876,159 to Erickson describes a drawer that can be pulled out sideways to obtain access to contents in the drawer. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 2,822,229 to Carlson describes a section of a desk top that can rotate downward and is spring biased. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,556,179 to Weidner describes a spring biased retractable suspension shelf. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 2,322,648 to Lundstrom describes a disappearing support for business machines and the like. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,058,846 to Close describes a pull down display and storage apparatus for cabinets in a commercial store. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 4,134,629 to Hansen describes a combination pivotable shelving having an associated pivotable door. 
     None of the above patents provide a simple pull down storage shelf assembly that is free from springs or complex linkage assembly as in the present invention and also requiring numerous parts which are very difficult to use and assemble. What is needed is a simple, low cost mechanism that can be attached to a cabinet by a lay person without having to resort to an experienced cabinet maker. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is the object of the present invention to provide a pull down shelf assembly. 
     It is another object of the present invention to use a pull down shelf assembly in a standard wall cabinet by cutting off the ends and using the existing shelf. 
     It is yet another object of the present invention to maintain the upper storage shelf member in a level position through its travel from the up position to the down position. 
     It is still another object of the present invention to provide access to items on the upper shelf member when the pull down shelf assembly is in a down position. 
     Briefly, in accordance with the present invention, there is provided a pull down shelf assembly that provides access to items on a shelf that was otherwise inaccessible when the shelf is in the up position. The pull down shelf assembly in the present invention is designed for a standard wall cabinet that has fixed dimension and is further described in this application. 
     Other objects and advantages will become apparent from the following description and appended claims taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     In the drawings, which illustrate the best mode presently contemplated for carrying out the present invention: 
     FIG. 1 is a left side exposed view of a standard wall cabinet showing the pull down shelf assembly in an up position, the right side being a mirror image. 
     FIG. 2 is a left side exposed view of a standard wall cabinet showing the pull down shelf in a down position, the right side being a mirror image. 
     FIG. 3 is a front view of a standard wall cabinet showing the pull down shelf in a up position. 
     FIG. 4 is a front view of a standard wall cabinet showing the pull down shelf in a down position. 
    
    
     The novel features which are believed to be characteristics of the invention, both as its organization and its method of operation, together with further objects and advantages thereof, will be better understood from the following description in connection with the accompanying drawings in which a presently preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated by way of example. It is to be expressly understood, however, that the drawings are for purposes of illustration and description only and are not intended as a definition of the limits of the invention. 
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     The pull down storage shelf assembly is directed to a standard wall cabinet. By definition, a standard wall cabinet is 12 inches deep measured on the outside. The distance between the upper surface of an upper shelf and the top surface of a lower shelf is 9 inches. The shelf for a standard wall cabinet is 11 inches deep and the shelf thickness of ¾ inches. The present invention is designed for a standard wall cabinet. Standard wall cabinets are prefabricated by large cabinet manufacturers and are sold in large retail home improvement centers. Standard wall cabinets provide 90 percent of the retail cabinet market. 
     Turning now to FIG. 1 there is seen an exposed side view of a pull down shelf assembly generally shown as  10 . The lower shelf  12  has attached thereto on the top of the lower shelf  12 , a tee section  14 , called a lower support member, the tee section having a web  16 . The lower shelf  12  is fastened to the sides and rear  18  of the cabinet by common fastening means such as glue, screws and nails. Rotatably attached to web  16  are the lower ends of rigid swing members  20  and  22 . Rigid swing members  20  and  22  are attached to the web  16  by pins  24  and  26 . Rigid swing members  20  and  22  are parallel to each other. Also seen in this view is a brace member  28  attached at one end by pin  26  and attached at the other end by fixed means such as a screw  30  fastened to the frame of the standard wall cabinet. Also seen in this view is upper storage shelf  32  having a tee section  34  called an upper support member attached to the bottom of upper storage shelf  32 . Upper storage shelf  32  is not attached to the back wall  18  or the side walls (not shown) of the standard cabinet  10 . Tee section  32  has a web  36  which has rotatably attached thereto the upper ends of rigid swing members  20  and  22 . The upper ends of rigid swing members  20  and  22  are attached to web  36  by rivets  38  and  40 . Also seen in this view is a section of retainer member  42 . The retainer member  42  is fitted to the back of upper storage shelf  32  to keep items from falling off as the upper storage shelf  32  travels from the upper to the lower position. Also seen in this view is stop  43  which stops the upper storage shelf  32  when the upper storage shelf  32  reaches the down position. 
     Turning now to FIG. 2 there is seen the upper storage shelf  32  in a down position. Rigid swing members  20  and  22  have rotated about rivets  24  and  26  and  38  and  40  which allowed the upper storage shelf  32  to swing down and out to the position in FIG.  2 . The stop  43  engages rigid swing members  20  and  22  and prevents the upper storage shelf  32  from further down travel. Brace  28  is fastened to the frame of the standard wall cabinet by fixed means such as a screw  30 . A handle to pull the shelf to a down position or to push the shelf to an up position is shown as  44 . 
     FIG. 3 provides a front view of a standard wall cabinet with the upper storage shelf  32  in the up position. In this view the right side of the upper storage shelf  32  can also be seen. Rigid swing members  20  and  46  can be seen in this view. Also, brace members  28  and  48  can be seen in the view. Also seen is handle  44  attached to the upper storage shelf  32 . The back portion of the retaining member  42  is also seen. Web members  36  and  52  which are attached to the bottom of upper storage shelf  32  are shown in this view. The pins  24  and  38  about which rigid swing member  20  rotates is seen along with pins  50  and  52  about which rigid swing member  46  rotates. 
     FIG. 4 shows a front view of a standard wall cabinet with the pull down upper storage shelf  32  in the down position. Lower shelf  12  can also be seen in this view along with brace members  28  and  38 . Handle  44  is seen attached to the upper storage shelf  32 . 
     Thus, it is apparent that there has been provided, in accordance with the invention, a storage shelf assembly that fully satisfies the objectives, aims, and advantages as set forth above. While the invention has been described in conjunction with specific embodiments thereof, it is evident that many altematives, modifications, and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art in light of the foregoing description. Accordingly, it is intended to embrace all such altematives, modifications, and variations that fall within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.