Source: http://www.freepatentsonline.com/y2009/0099706.html
Timestamp: 2020-06-04 15:32:16
Document Index: 176641238

Matched Legal Cases: ['art.\n3', 'art.\n4', 'art.\n6', 'art.\n7', 'art.\n14', 'art.\n15', 'art.\n16', '§119', 'Application No. 20']

APPARATUS FOR CONTROLLING THE MOVEMENT OF FURNITURE PARTS WHICH CAN BE MOVED WITH RESPECT TO ONE ANOTHER, AND PIECE OF FURNITURE - Grass GmbH
United States Patent Application 20090099706
Medebach, Steffen (Wetzlar, DE)
Oberpichler, Frank (Giessen, DE)
12/244884
Download PDF 20090099706 PDF help
20080308400 WORK MACHINE OPERATOR INPUT ASSEMBLY December, 2008 States et al.
2. A device for controlling the movement of furniture parts which can be moved with respect to one another, comprising a drive unit by means of which a first furniture part can be moved in a driven manner relative to a second furniture part, and a monitoring unit for monitoring the movement of the first furniture part wherein the monitoring unit records a movement pattern of the first furniture part when the first furniture part collides with an object, deduces the nature of the collision, and then uses the recorded movement pattern as the basis for further monitoring of the movement of the first furniture part.
3. The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the monitoring unit records a closing movement pattern of the first furniture part during a closing movement of the first furniture part if the first furniture part collides with an object, and then uses this closing movement pattern as the basis for further monitoring of the movement of the first furniture part.
4. The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the monitoring unit uses a movement pattern of the first furniture part as the basis for distinguishing between a collision with an object and a deliberate stopping of the movement of the first furniture part by an operator.
5. The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the monitoring unit evaluates signals, which can be detected by sensor means, in order to characterize the movement pattern of the first furniture part.
6. The device as claimed in claim 1, further comprising an incremental transmitter that generates pulses as a function of movement of the first furniture part, and wherein the monitoring unit evaluates the pulses from the incremental transmitter in order to record the movement pattern of the first furniture part.
7. The device as claimed in claim 6, wherein the monitoring unit distinguishes between a collision with an object and a deliberate stopping of the movement of the first furniture part by an operator, on the basis of a comparison of the recorded pulses from the incremental transmitter per unit time with a reference value.
8. The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the monitoring unit stops the movement of the first furniture part after a collision of the moving first furniture part with an object.
9. The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the monitoring unit decelerates the movement of the first furniture part after a collision with an object.
10. The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the monitoring unit decelerates the movement of the first furniture part in order to stop the movement of the first furniture part when deliberately initiated by an operator.
11. The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the drive unit and the monitoring unit cooperatively move the first furniture part to a predetermined position after a collision with an object.
12. The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the monitoring unit stops the first furniture part after a collision with an object, and then the drive unit and the monitoring unit cooperatively move the first furniture part to the predetermined position after a defined time interval has elapsed.
13. The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the monitoring unit stops the first furniture part after a collision with an object, and then the drive unit and the monitoring unit cooperatively move the first furniture part to a closed position relative to the second furniture part.
14. The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the monitoring unit stops the first furniture part after a collision with an object, and then the drive unit and the monitoring unit cooperatively move the first furniture part to an open position relative to the second furniture part.
15. The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein after a collision with an object the drive unit and monitoring unit cooperatively move the first furniture part back through a predetermined movement distance in the opposite direction to the movement direction of the first furniture part before the collision, and then the monitoring unit stops the first furniture part.
16. The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the monitoring unit stops the first furniture part within a predetermined movement distance if the first furniture part collides with an object during an opening movement of the first furniture part from the closed position.
17. The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the monitoring unit associates a collision of the first furniture part with an object within a predetermined movement distance exclusively with a deliberate stopping of the movement which has been initiated by an operator.
18. A piece of furniture comprising the device as claimed in claim 1.
This application is a continuation of International Application No. PCT/EP2007/003027, filed Apr. 4, 2007, which designated the United States, and claims the benefit under 35 USC §119(a)-(d) of German Application No. 20 2006 005 580.0, filed Apr. 4, 2006, the entireties of which are incorporated herein by reference.
FIG. 1 shows, obliquely from above, a piece of furniture 1 according to the invention with a housing 2 and a drawer 3 which is guided such that it can move in the housing 2. The drawer 3 which is arranged in the lower area of the housing 2 is illustrated in the open or pulled-out state, with the drawer 3 being movable with respect to the housing 2 by means of a pulling-out fitting or a drawer guide 4. A further drawer (not shown) can be accommodated in the housing 2 via a further drawer guide 5, in a manner corresponding to the drawer 3. The drawer 3 can be moved, to be precise pulled out or pushed in, relative to the housing 2 as indicated by the double-headed arrow P1. The drawer guide 4 is in each case fitted on the drawer side in the lower area of drawer frames 3b which project upwards on both sides on a drawer bottom 3a in order to hold and guide the movement of the drawer. Only the respective drawer guides 4 and 5 can be seen in FIG. 1, which are attached to the inside of a housing which can be seen. The drawer 3 can be moved in a driven manner, in which case the drive unit (not shown) can be arranged, for example, in the rear area of the housing or on the drawer guides 4, 5.
The drawer 8 is illustrated in a moved-out state with respect to the housing 7, or in an open position. The drawer 9 is located in a closed position, or is illustrated in a state in which it has been moved in the housing 7, with a drawer front 9a being positioned at a distance of up to 2 centimeters away from a front edge 7a of the housing, in order to allow the drawer 9 to be operated by means of a touch-latch system (not shown) or to be opened by pressing against the drawer front 9a. In order to open the drawer 9, it is moved through a short distance in the direction of the housing 7 by pressure on the drawer front 9a, as a result of which, after an initiation action, the drive unit 15 can move the drawer 9 forwards, in a driven manner, via the drive element 12.
The drawer 10 is moved out through part of the distance from the closed position, thus resulting in there being a distance 17 between a drawer front 10a and the front edge 7a. The drawer 10 is located in the state after a collision with an object, for example an object 18 in the form of a drinks case. When the drawer 10 was being moved out, a collision was identified and processed further on the basis of the movement pattern of the drawer 10 as detected when the collision occurred. In the situation illustrated in FIG. 2, damage to the object 18 and to the drawer 10 was avoided by immediately sharply stopping the drawer 10 at the moment of the collision, and in particular the object 18 was advantageously not knocked over, thus making it possible to preclude further damage caused by being knocked over. Furthermore, the drawer 10 was subsequently moved back through a small movement distance in the direction of the housing 7 after having been stopped, thus resulting in a short distance or small gap 19 between the drawer front 10a and the object 18.
7a Front edge
Previous Patent: Temperature management system for a multiple core chip
Next Patent: Systems and methods for improving haul road conditions