Improvements in Cabinets.
Year: 1892

page_text: Date of Application, 26th July, 1892-Accepted, 27th Aug., 1892
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Cabinets.
I, AMBROSE MYALL, of 21 Cockspur Street, Pall Mall, S.W. in the County of
Middlesex, Civil Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention
(which has been communicated to me by John F. Ohmer, Wilfred I. Ohmer,
Alfred A. Ohmer, and Eugene A. Ohmer, trading under the style or firm of The
Ohmer File Case Co. of Nos. 128, 130, and 132 North Main Street, Dayton,
in the County of Montgomery, and State of Ohio, United States of America,
Manufacturers,) and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
This invention relates to certain new and useful improvements in cabinets.
The said improvements have reference to a locking device to lock the doors of a
cabinet in a closed position, consisting of a lever arm, adapted to be held by a
moveable stop to lock the doors; they also have reference to a lift carried by each
door, and a gravitating pawl adjacent thereto, whereby the doors are operated to
throw said lever arm to its unlocking position and to support said door in its
open position respectively; and have reference to other points herein after
described and particularly pointed out in the claims.
In the accompanying sheet of drawings, on which like reférence letters indicate
corresponding parts;
Fig. 1, represents a perspective view of a cabinet with the said improvements
applied thereto;
Fig. 2, is a vertical sectional view on the line of Fig. 1 looking to the right,
the doors being shown in their locked position; and
Fig. 3 is a similar view to Fig. 2, one door being raised and supported by
its gravitating catch, the locking device being shown in its inoperative position.
The letter A designates a casing of rectangular or other convenient shape, and
divided into compartments by partitions A' and shelves A", to constitute a cabinet
for the reception of letter files, or papers to be stored away within the same.
The front of the casing is preferably closed by doors B slidingly mounted in
vertical grooves or guides C, and mounted one above the other, whereby access
may be had to the several compartments by sliding said doors. Each door is
provided with a lift D, or otherwise adapted to be slid within its guides, whereby
access may be had to the compartment immediately behind it. In order to main-
tain the door in its open position, a gravitating pawl E, mounted on a pin F is also
carried by said door adjacent to the lift D, and provided with a spur El, so that the
pawl may be operated to engage with the shelf A" or other part of the casing,
when the door is in its open position as shown in Fig. 3. The lift D is prefer-
ably formed integral with a frame D₁ adapted to receive a card G designating
the division or a class of papers contained in the compartment closed by said
door. The pawl E normally gravitates, when free, to the position shown in
Fig. 2, so as to readily disengage itself from the shelf A" or other part by
which it supports the one above it, and only the pawl on the door operated is
engaged with the shelf above the lift and pawl, the other pawls remaining in
their inoperative position as in Fig. 2. The card G may be inserted iu, or
removed from, its enclosing frame D₁, through a slit in the top, or other portion of
the frame, as seen in Figures 2 & 3. The doors B close by gravity.
The doors are locked in their closed position, when so desired, by a locking device
consisting of a transverse bar H, rotatably mounted in bracket or other bearings I,
near the top of said casing, and provided with lever arms J, adapted to engage with
the series of doors, respectively opposite to each arm, and thus lock them in their
LD027

page_text: closed position when the said bar H is prevented from rotating by a fastening
device or movable stop. This stop preferably consists of a spring catch piece K
adapted to engage with a ratchet segment L mounted on said bar H, whereby the
rotation thereof in one direction is prevented until the piece K is thrown out of
engagement by a key K', or other means, adapted to engage with said piece. The
lever arms,
when engaged with the doors, thus prevent opening the same until the
stop piece K is moved to allow the rotation of the bar H, under the pressure of
the doors against said arms. That is to say when the stop picce K is thrown back-
ward by a key or otherwise the doors being moved by the pressure of the hand
upon the lift D, or other portion of the door, or by any other means will throw the
lever arms upward to their inoperative position as shown in Fig. 3. The doors may
then be freely raised and lowered. When desired to lock the doors in their closed
position, the bar H is rotated by operating the handle M mounted thereon, in
the direction of the arrow Fig. 3, thus throwing the lever arms, or locking
attachment downward into engagement with their respective doors, while the
segment L ratchets past the stop K till the arms reach their locking position.
It will be seen that the doors are locked in their closed position by rotating the
bar H through the handle M or otherwise, without the use of the key, and that
when the stop piece K is disengaged from the ratchet L the lever arms will be
thrown backward to their inoperative position, as in Fig. 3, on raising the door by
its lift D. Any other means in place of the ratchet segment L may be employed
to lock the bar H to maintain the lever arms in their locking position.
While the doors have been described as adapted to slide vertically, they may be
otherwise adjustable if so desired, as I do not wish to limit the improvements herein
exemplified to the special construction illustrated herewith. Any convenient form
of movable stop piece may be employed in place of the one illustrated.
The doors B descend by gravity to close the compartments.
The locking
attachment or bar that holds them down is rotated or otherwise moved into engage-
ment with said doors and may consist of a single cover or piece of any material
adapted to engage with the top of each series of doors, or in any other manner,
and hold them down; the said locking bar being formed in any convenient
manner otherwise than with separate and distinct arms as shown, if so desired.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is:
1st. In a cabinet, the combination with a case divided into compartments, and
doors slidingly mounted in said case and adapted to close said compartments, of
a rotatable bar mounted adjacent to said doors, arms on said bar adapted to
engage with said doors in their closed position, and means to prevent the rotation
of said bar and thus lock said door.
2nd. In a cabinet, the combination with a case divided into compartments, and
doors slidingly mounted in said case to close said compartments, of a rotatable
bar mounted adjacent to said doors, lever arms carried by said bar and adapted
to engage with said doors in their closed position, ratchet segment also carried by
said bar, and a movable stop adapted to lock said bar from turning in one direc-
tion, and allow said segment to ratchet past said stop in turning the bar in the
other direction.
3rd. In a cabinet, the combination with a compartment casing and sliding doors
to close the compartments, of a rotatable bar mounted adjacent to said doors, a
lever arm carried by said bar and adapted to engage with one of the said doors
to lock them down, means to prevent the rotation of said bar, a lift and a catch
carried by said door to raise and support it respectively, the lifting of the door
acting to throw said arm to its inoperative position when the bar is left free to
rotate.
4th. In a cabinet the combination with slidable doors, of a lock therefor arranged

page_text: to engage the upper of a series of doors, and so lock all of the doors, a movable
stop, and a device carried by the lock and engaging with the stop positively in one
direction, and ratchet like in the other.
AMBROSE MYALL.