Abstract:
A T-shaped unit includes a first section that is vertical when the unit is in use and a second section that is horizontal when the unit is in use. The first section includes two telescopingly connected elements and the second section includes two elements that are slidingly connected to the first section to slide in a horizontal plane. A soft furniture-engaging element is also included in the second section and one or more clips are provided to lock the sliding elements in a selected position.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   1. Field of the Invention 
   The present invention relates to the general art of supports, and to the particular field of work supports. 
   2. Discussion of the Related Art 
   Many workers require helpers to support a workpiece in position. A prime example of this is a cabinet installer. Many cabinets are bulky and heavy and must be supported in a very precise location as the cabinet is being fixed to a support, such as a wall or the like. This task often takes two or more individuals: one to support the cabinet in place and one to place the anchoring elements in the cabinet and the support. This can be a costly and time-consuming task. Even then, a human supporting a cabinet, especially a heavy and bulky cabinet, may move before the cabinet is anchored in place. Such movement may upset the precise locating of the cabinet and result in still further wasted time and effort. 
   Therefore, there is a need for a support unit for holding a cabinet in place during installation. 
   While the art does contain several examples of elements used to support cabinets while the cabinet is being worked on or installed, the prior art devices known to the inventor do not have the capability of adjusting in several directions. Since some cabinets are larger than others, a support should have the capability of being adjustable to accommodate both large and small cabinets. Otherwise, a worker may be required to own several supports or he may not be able to support some cabinets. 
   Therefore, there is a need for an adjustable support unit for holding a cabinet in place during installation. 
   Any adjustment should be easy and expeditious to effect, otherwise some of the advantages associated with the unit being adjustable will be lost. 
   Therefore, there is a need for a support unit for holding a cabinet in place during installation which is easily and expeditiously adjusted. 
   Still further, since many cabinets have a special finish, any installation of the cabinets must occur without endangering the finish of the cabinets. For example, if a cabinet is supported on a support unit that scratches or otherwise mars the finish of the cabinet, the cabinet may have to be replaced. This will create extra expense and cost time, which will more than match any savings associated with use of the support element. 
   Therefore, there is a need for a support unit for holding a cabinet in place during installation which is easily and expeditiously adjusted and which will not mar the surface of a cabinet being supported. 
   PRINCIPAL OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION 
   It is a main object of the present invention to provide a support unit for holding a cabinet in place during installation. 
   It is another object of the present invention to provide an adjustable support unit for holding a cabinet in place during installation. 
   It is another object of the present invention to provide a support unit for holding a cabinet in place during installation which is easily and expeditiously adjusted. 
   It is another object of the present invention to provide a support unit for holding a cabinet in place during installation which is easily and expeditiously adjusted and which will not mar the surface of a cabinet being supported. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   These, and other, objects are achieved by a T-shaped support unit that includes a vertical support element formed of two telescopingly connected sections and a horizontal support element which includes two sections slidingly connected to a soft cabinet-engaging element. One or more clips can be used to lock the horizontal support elements in position. 
   Using an embodiment of the present invention will support a cabinet while that cabinet is being anchored to a support, such as a wall or the like. The support can be easily and expeditiously adjusted whereby both large and small cabinets can be accommodated by the same support unit and a worker need not own several different support units. The support unit has a soft support element that abuts the cabinet when the cabinet is being supported whereby the finish of the cabinet will not be marred by contact with the support element. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES 
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a cabinet support embodying the present invention. 
       FIG. 2  is a sectional view taken along line  2 — 2  of  FIG. 1 . 
       FIG. 3  is a detailed view showing the joint between two support elements of the cabinet support shown in  FIG. 1 . 
       FIG. 4  is a perspective view of a clip used to hold portions of a head element of the cabinet support in position, according to the present invention. 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
   Other objects, features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from a consideration of the following detailed description and the accompanying drawings. 
   Referring to the Figures, it can be understood that the present invention is embodied in a cabinet support unit  10 . 
   Cabinet support unit  10  comprises a first section  12  which is vertical in a use orientation supporting a cabinet during installation of the cabinet such as shown in  FIG. 1 . 
   First section  12  includes a first element  14  that is a bottom element when first section  12  is in use. First element  14  includes a first end  16  which is a bottom end in use, a second end  20 , and a longitudinal axis  22  which extends between first end  16  and second end  20 . A side wall  26  connects first end  16  to second end  20 . A plurality of holes, such as hole  30 , are defined in side wall  26  near second end  20  and are spaced apart from each other in the direction of longitudinal axis  22 . First element  14  is hollow and has a bore  32  which extends from second end  20  toward first end  16 . 
   A second element  40  is a top element when first section  12  is in use. Second element  40  includes a first end  42  which is a lower end in use, a second end  44  which is a top end of second element  40  in use, and a longitudinal axis  46  which extends between first end  42  and second end  44 . A side wall  48  connects first end  42  to second end  44 . A plurality of holes, such as hole  50 , are defined in side wall  48  near first end  42  and are spaced apart from each other in the direction of longitudinal axis  46 . Side wall  48  is sized relative to side wall  26  so second element  40  is telescopingly received in bore  32  of first element  14  with holes  30  being alignable with holes  50  as can be understood from the teaching of  FIG. 3 . 
   A locking pin  60  is accommodated in holes  30  and  50  when the holes are aligned with each other. 
   A soft cover  64  is located on bottom end  16  of first element  14 . 
   A U-shaped support arm  70  has a first end  72  fixed to side wall  26  adjacent to bottom end  16 , a second end  74  located adjacent to bottom end  16 , and a support base element  76  on second end  74  of support arm  70 . Support base element  76  is co-planar with soft cover  64  on the bottom end  16  of the first element  14  and is spaced apart from the bottom end  16  of the first element  14 . 
   A second section  80  is horizontal in a use orientation supporting a cabinet during installation of the cabinet as shown in  FIG. 1 . 
   Second section  80  includes a first L-shaped element  82  which has a first end  84 , a second end  86 , and a longitudinal axis  88  which extends between first end  84  and second end  86 . A first leg  90  is oriented vertically when first L-shaped element  82  is in use, and a second leg  92  is oriented horizontally when first L-shaped element  82  is in use. The first and second legs  90  and  92  of first L-shaped element  82  intersect each other to form a right angle  96 . An outer edge  100  is located on first leg  90  and an outer edge  102  is located on second leg  92 . A first cabinet-facing surface  110  is on first leg  90  and is oriented vertically when the first L-shaped element  82  is in use. A second cabinet-facing surface  112  is on second leg  92  and is oriented horizontally when the first L-shaped element  82  is in use. A first outer surface  114  is on first leg  90  and is oriented vertically when the first L-shaped element  82  is in use, and a second outer surface  116  is on second leg  92  of the first L-shaped element  82  and is oriented horizontally when the first L-shaped element  82  is in use. 
   A second L-shaped element  120  has a first end  122 , a second end  124 , and a longitudinal axis  126  which extends between first end  122  and second end  124 . A first leg  130  is oriented vertically when second L-shaped element  120  is in use and a second leg  132  is oriented horizontally when second L-shaped element  120  is in use. First leg  130  intersects second leg  132  at a right angle  138 . First leg  130  of the second L-shaped element  120  has an outer edge  140  and second leg  132  of the second L-shaped element  120  has an outer edge  142  spaced apart from intersection  138 . A first cabinet-facing surface  150  is on first leg  130  of the second L-shaped element  120  and is oriented vertically when the second L-shaped element  120  is in use, and a second cabinet-facing surface  152  is on second leg  132  of the second L-shaped element  120  and is oriented horizontally when the second L-shaped element  120  is in use. A first outer surface  160  is located on first leg  130  and is oriented vertically when second L-shaped element  120  is in use and a second outer surface  162  is located on second leg  132  which is oriented horizontally when second L-shaped element  120  is in use. First end  122  of the second L-shaped element  120  is located adjacent to first end  84  of first L-shaped element  82 . The first cabinet-facing surfaces  110 ,  150  and the first outer surfaces  114 ,  160  of the first and second L-shaped elements  82 ,  120  are co-planar with each other when second section  80  is in use. The second cabinet-facing surfaces  112 ,  152  and the second outer surfaces  116 ,  162  of the first and second L-shaped elements  82 ,  120  are co-planar with each other when second section  80  is in use. 
   An L-shaped sleeve  170  is mounted on second end  44  of second element  40  of first section  12  by a collar  172 , or the like. L-shaped sleeve  170  includes a first portion  174  which is oriented vertically when sleeve  170  is in use and which includes an inside surface  176  and an outside surface  178 . A second portion  180  is oriented horizontally when sleeve  170  is in use and includes an inside surface  182  and an outside surface  184 . Inside surface  176  of first portion  174  of the L-shaped sleeve  170  abuts the first outer surfaces  114 ,  160  of both of the first and second L-shaped elements  82  and  120 . The first and second L-shaped elements  82 ,  120  are slidingly connected to the L-shaped sleeve  170  to be slidingly connected together via the L-shaped sleeve  170  and to move toward and away from each other as indicated in  FIG. 1  by double-headed arrow  188 . A first U-shaped hook portion  190  is located on first portion  174  of the L-shaped sleeve  170  and a second U-shaped hook portion  192  is located on second portion  180  of the L-shaped sleeve  170 . First U-shaped hook portion  190  slidingly engages the outer edges  100 ,  140  of the first legs  90 ,  130  of the first and second L-shaped elements  82 ,  120  and second U-shaped hook portion  192  slidingly engages the outer edges  102 ,  142  of the second legs  92 ,  132  of the first and second L-shaped elements  82 ,  120 . 
   An L-shaped cabinet-supporting liner  200  is mounted on the inside surfaces  110 ,  112 ,  150 ,  152  of the first and second legs  90 ,  92 ,  130 ,  132  of the first and second L-shaped elements  82 ,  120 . Cabinet-supporting element  200  is formed of foam-like material so it can contact and support a cabinet without marring the finish of the cabinet. 
   A locking element  210  is shown in  FIG. 4  and is sized to slidingly fit on one of the L-shaped elements  82 ,  120  of second section  80 , as indicated in  FIG. 1  by the dotted line, to hold the second section  80  in a selected position. If suitable, two locking elements  210  can be used, with one locking element  210  being located adjacent to each end of sleeve  170 . 
   Use of unit  10  is easily understood by one skilled in the art based on the teaching of the present disclosure. Accordingly, such use will only be briefly outlined. Unit  10  is placed on a supporting surface and is oriented vertically. The height of the unit  10  is adjusted using the telescoping feature of the first section  12  and the width of the unit  10  is adjusted using the sliding feature of the second section  80  so a cabinet can be securely supported in a selected position. A cabinet is then placed on the cabinet-supporting element  200 , as indicated by the broken lines designated by numeral  210  in  FIG. 2 , and supported in position until the cabinet can be anchored to a support. Unit  10  can then be collapsed and moved out of the way. 
   It is understood that while certain forms of the present invention have been illustrated and described herein, it is not to be limited to the specific forms or arrangements of parts described and shown.