Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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MOULDING ASSEMBLY
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a moulding assembly and in particular
concerns
such an assembly for use in the attachment of above-cabinet treatments,
namely finishing or decorative mouldings applied to cabinets for aesthetic
purposes.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
It is well known in the cabinet-making art to provide a decorative one-piece
moulding as an aesthetic feature to finish the top of a cabinet, for example a
breakfront bookcase or more mundanely a kitchen cabinet. The moulding
generally includes a base part contiguous and integral with an outwardly
extending contoured part obtusely oriented in relation to the base part.
Such a moulding may be a unitary, or one piece, moulding. However, a
difficulty commonly associated with a one-piece moulding is its application to
the cabinet top because the moulding tends to be unwieldy, especially when
fixing the moulding to the cabinet.
One solution for facilitating the fixing of a decorative moulding to a cabinet
top is
to produce the moulding as a two piece assembly having. Such two piece
moulding assemblies typically have a base piece and a decorative piece for
attachment to the base piece such that when affixed one to the other and
applied to the cabinet top, the moulding appears to be unitary. An example of
such a two piece moulding assembly known in the prior art is illustrated in
Figure 1. As shown in section in Figure 1, the moulding assembly 10 has a
base piece 12, for securement to the cabinet top (not shown), with a
horizontally-extending tongue 13 provided along the length of the base piece
10
integrally therewith. A separate decorative piece 14 is shown as having a
complementary groove 15 for the reception of the tongue 13 to provide an
interlocking joint, thus giving the appearance of a unitary moulding. In
practice,
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the pieces of the moulding can be secured together by the use of a bonding
agent and/or by the use of fixing such as panel pins or other suitable
fixtures.
Unfortunately, while it will be readily appreciated that although the tongue
13
and groove 15 is satisfactory the shape and the weight distribution of the
decorative piece does not afford the desired stability during the fixing
operation
of the assembly 10 to the cabinet. Additionally, the orientation of the groove
15
for the prior art assembly 10 is such that its formation during manufacture
demands an angular setting that may be difficult or awkward to achieve.
Accordingly, there is a need for an improved two-piece moulding assembly for
use as a decorative finishing in an above-cabinet treatment.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is therefore a general object of the present invention to provide an
improved
two-piece moulding assembly for use as a decorative finishing in an above-
cabinet treatment.
An advantage of the present invention is that the two-piece moulding assembly
that facilitates the engagement of the two pieces for fixing.
Another advantage of the present invention is that the two-piece moulding
assembly has a design to afford ease of machining during the manufacturing
stage.
In one aspect, the present invention provides a moulding assembly for
attachment to a cabinet top of a cabinet as a decorative finishing for the
cabinet,
the assembly comprising:
- a base piece of generally elongate form having two end surfaces with a
generally opposed top surface and a bottom surface extending
therebetween and a generally opposed front surface and back surface
extending therebetween, the front surface having a tongue projecting
therefrom at an obtuse angle in relation to the top surface; and
- a decorative piece having a contoured outwardly directed front surface
and a mounting face contiguous therewith, the mounting face having a
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... ... . .... .... . . ... ..
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longitudinally extending groove formed therein, the groove receiving the
tongue in interlocking engagement therewith and with the mounting face
and the front surface abutting one another, the tongue and groove
thereby providing positive support for the decorative piece in relation to
the base piece.
Conveniently the tongue of the base piece is so fashioned as to constitute a
supporting ledge for the decorative piece when the two pieces are brought
together for securement.
The orientation of the groove is such that its formation during manufacture is
simplified in that the plane of the cutting tool is horizontal in orientation,
whereas
the prior art demands an angular setting that may be difficult or awkward to
achieve.
Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent
from a careful reading of the detailed description provided herein, with
appropriate reference to the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Further aspects and advantages of the present invention will become better
understood with reference to the description in association with the following
Figures 2 and 3, in which similar references used in different Figures denote
similar components, wherein:
Figure 7 is a cross section of a prior art two-piece moulding assembly;
Figure 2 is a cross section of the two-piece moulding assembly of the present
invention; and
Figure 3 is a perspective exploded view of the two-piece moulding assembly
shown in Figure 2.
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DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
With reference to Figures 2 and 3 of the annexed drawings the preferred
embodiment of the present invention will be herein described for indicative
purposes and by no means as of limitation.
Figures 2 and 3 show a two-piece moulding assembly 20 comprising a base
piece 22 and a decorative piece 40. The base piece 22 is of elongate
rectangular form having a top surface 24, a generally opposed bottom surface
26, a front surface 28 and a generally opposed back surface 30 with two end
surfaces 32, 34 between which the other surfaces 24, 26,28, 30 longitudinally
extend.
The front surface 28 of the base piece 22 is formed with a tongue 36 extending
outwardly and upwardly therefrom and longitudinally of the base piece 22. The
tongue 36 is orientated at an obtuse angle A in relation to the top surface 26
and is typically rounded over at its free end 38.
The decorative piece 40 has a front outwardly facing front face 42 of
contoured
form as at 43 and has a mounting face 44 with an angularly oriented back face
45, generally opposite the front face 42, extending obtusely from the mounting
face 44. The decorative piece 40 further has a top surface 48.
A groove 50 extends longitudinally of the piece 40 and is machined in an
obtuse
orientation in the mounting face 44. The groove 50 thus extends substantially
parallel to the back face 45. This parallelism is of particular advantage for
the
machining of the groove in that the cutting tool needs only to be disposed in
a
horizontal plane rather than an awkward acute angle as with the prior art.
In use, in order to assemble the two pieces, the groove 50 of the decorative
piece 40 is brought into mating engagement with the tongue 36 of the base
piece and in so doing an interlocking engagement, i.e. interlocking
registration,
is established by virtue of the obtuse angular orientation of the tongue and
groove. At the same time, the front surface 42 is brought into abutting
contact
in a substantially vertical plane with the mounting face 44 when the tongue 36
is
engaged in the groove.
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For application to a cabinet top (not shown), the base piece 22 is suitably
affixed thereto, generally with the bottom surface 26 abutting thereagainst
the
cabinet top, with the tongue 36 extending outwardly as seen in Figure 3 and
the
decorative piece 40 is then directed as shown by dotted lines into the
5 engagement relationship with the base piece 22. The interlocking tongue and
groove may be permanently secured together by a bonding agent and/or by at
least one panel pin or brad nail.
The invention thus facilitates application of a decorative finishing to a
cabinet
top since the decorative piece is able to sit on the base piece, positively
supported thereon by virtue of the tongue and groove which maintain the
interlocking relationship for the fixing operation of the assembly 20 to the
cabinet top.
Although the present invention has been described with a certain degree of
particularity, it is to be understood that the disclosure has been made by way
of
example only and that the present invention is not limited to the features of
the
embodiments described and illustrated herein, but includes all variations and
modifications within the scope and spirit of the invention as hereinafter
claimed.