Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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Back~round of the Invention
A slide assembly is often employed with an extension
table to permit the ends of the table to be extended or moved
apart and enable additional leaves to be inserted between the
extended ends to increase the overall table area With ~arger
tables, or tables having a central leg or pedestal, an equalizer
slide assembly is frequently used in which the central section of
the slide is fixed to the leg or pedestal while the outer slide
sections are secured to the table ends and interconnected by an
equalizer arrangement so that extension or retraction of one outer
slide section will be transmitted to the cther outer slide section.
With the use of the equalizer slide assembly, extending or retract-
ing one end of the table will automatically act to correspondingly
extend or retract the opposite end of the table while maintaining
lS the pedestal or central leg at the center of the split table.
In the pastJ various types of equalizer mechanisms have
been employed, such as a gear and rack arrangement in which a gear
is mounted on the fixed central section and is engaged with racks
on the outer sections. By extending one of the outer sections the
gear is driven to correspondingly extend the outer slide section.
Equalizer mechanism, as used in the past, have also
included cables or bands mounted on pulleys on the central section.
With a cable arrangement, the cables are connected to the outer
sections in a manner whereby extension of one outer section will5 act to correspondingly extend the other outer section.
Summary of the Invention
The invention relates to an improved equalizer slide
assembly which has a particular application for use with extension
tables. The slide assembly includes a central section, which is
adapted to be secured to the cen~ral pedestal or leg of a table,
and outer sections are located on either side of the central section
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and are connected to the central section by connector assemblies
tha~ permit relative sliding movement of the outer sections with
respect to the central section.
Pulley or supports are located at the ends of the central
section and an elongated endless flexible member, such as a cable,
is trained over the pulleys. Opposite por~ions of the cable are
connected to the connector assemblies so that extension or retrac-
tion of one of the outer sections will operate to correspondingly
extend or contract the other outer section.
The equalizer slide assembly of the invention is a simplif-
ied construction over those employed in the past and provides a
positive connection between the cable and the sliding outer sections.
The equalizer mechanism can be applied to a standard
table slide assembly so that the same basic slide mechanism can be
utilized for an equalizer slide assembly as well as for a slide
assembly that does not include an equalizer feature.
Other objects and advantages will appear in the course
of the following description.
Description of the Drawings
The drawings illustrate the best mode presently contem-
plated of carrying out the invention.
In the drawings:
Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the equalizer slide
assembly of the invention in the partially extended position;
Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the slide assembly with
parts broken away in section;
Fig. 3 is a section taken along line 3-3 of Fig. 3;
Fig. 4 is a section taken along line 4-4 of Fig.2; and
shwoing a connector assembly;
Fig. 5 is a section taken along line 5-5 of Fig. 4;
Fig. 6 is a section taken along line 6-6 of Fig. 4;
Fig. 7 is an exploded view of a connector assembly;
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Fig, 8 is a section taken along line 8-8 of Fig, 2;
Fig. 9 is a section taken along line 9-9 of Fig, 8;
Fig. 10 is a section taken along line 10-10 of Fig. 8;
and
Fig. 11 is a perspective view of a clip used to attach
the cable to a connector assembly.
DescriPtion of the Illustrated Embodiment
.
The drawings illustrate an equalizer slide assembly which
can be utilized with an extension table or any other applica~ion
where it is desired to slide two components relative to a fixed
component. The slide assembly includes central section 1 and a
pair of outer sections 2 and 3 which are located on opposite sides
of the central section and are adapted to slide longitudinally
with respect to the central section.
As best illustra~ed in Figs. 4 and 8, each of the sec-
tions 1-3 is -formed of an upper channel 4 and a lower channel 5,
the side flanges of which are joined together by a series of plates
or straps 6 which are located at intervals along the length of the
sections.
The central section 1 is adapted to be secured to a
fixed support such as a pedestal or central leg of a table, and
to provide the fixed connection, the lower surface of the central
member is provided with a series of holes 7 surrounded by dimples
or bosses and suitable screws or fasteners extend through holes 7
and secure the central section to the fixed support. The outer
sections 2 and 3 are adapted to be connected to the ends of the
table and the upper surfaces of the sections 2 and 3 are provided
with holes 8 which are also surrounded by dimples ox bosses. Screws
or fasteners, not.shown, extend through holes 8 and connect the
outer sections to the respective table ends.
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Accessopenings 9 are pro~ided in both the upper channel
4 of central section l and in the lower channel 5 of the outer
sections 2 and 3, in alignment with the holes 7 and 8, to permlt a
tool to be inserted within the sections to attach the central
section 1 to the fixed support and attach the outer sections 2 and
3 to the table ends.
The outer sections 2 and 3 are connected to the central
section 1 by connector assemblies, indicated generally by 10, to
permit relative longitudinal movement of the outer sections with
respect to the fixed central section. Each of the connector
assemblies 10 includes a plate 11 which is welded to the inner
surface of the corresponding vertical flanges of the channels 4
and 5. For example, a pair of connector assemblies 10 connect
the central section^l to the uuter section 2, and the plate 11 of
one of the assemblies 10 is welded to the inner surfaces of the
flanges of the channels 4 and 5 of the outer section 2, while the
plate 11 of the other connector assembly is welded to the inner
surfaces of the flanges of channels 4 and 5 of the central section.
Similarly, a pair of connector assemblies 10 connect the central
section 1 and the out~r section 3 and the plate 11 of one of the
assemblies 10 is welded to the inner surfaces of the flanges of
the channels 4 and 5 of the outer section 3, while the plate 11 of
the second of the assemblies 10 is welded to the inner surface of
the flanges of the channels 4 and 5 of the central section.
As best shown in Fig. 7, each of the plates 11 of the
connector assemblies 10 is provided with a pair of C-shaped side
flanges 12 which extend through the gap 13 between the edges of
the channels 4 and 5, and through a central opening 14 in a slide
plate 15 which is disposed between the central section and each of
3Q the outer sections 2 and 3. Slide plates 15 serve to space the
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sections 1-3 apart laterally.
As shown in the Fig. 7, each slide plate 15 is provided
with a pair of generally horizontal ears 16 which are located
above the upper horizontal legs 17 of flanges 12 on plate 11, to
thereby position the slide plate 15 with respect to the sections.
Each connector assembly 10 also includes a spring clip
18 having a generally vertical section 19, the ends of which ter-
minate in reverse bends 20. Horizontal sections 21 extend out-
wardly from the bent portions 20 and extend through a slot 22
formed in the central portion of plate 11. As best shown in Fig.7
sections 21 are provided with punched-out locking tabs 23, and
when the sections 21 are forced into the respective slots 22 the
tabs 23 will spring outwardly to thereby secure the clips 18 with
respect to the plates 11.
With this construction, the connector assemblies 10 act
to connect the outer sections 2 and 3 to the central section 1,
and permit longitudinal sliding movement of each outer section
with respect to the central section.
In accordance with the invention, an endless elongated
flexible ~ember or equalizer cable 24 is located within the inter-
ior of the central section 1 and a pair of pulley assemblies or
supports 25 are mounted at the ends of the central section and
support the cable. As best shown in Fig. 3, each of the pulley
assemblies 25 includes a pulley 26, over which the cable is
trained, and a fixed hub 27 on which the pulley is journalled. A
stem 28 of reduced diameter extends outwardly from the hub and
through a hole 29 in one of the straps 6. The outer end of the
stem 28 is provided with a V-shape cut which is deformed outwardly,
as indicated by 30, to lock the stem with respect to the strap 6.
The cable 24 is attached through the connector assemblies
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10 to the outer sections 2 and 3 In this regard, one of the
connector assemblies 10 that connects the central section 1 to
outer section 2, and one of the connector assemblies that connects
the central section to the outer section 3, carries a connector 31
and one end of the connector is provided with a generally horiz-
ontal channel or passage 32 whic~ receives the cable 24. The
cable is continuous or endless, and the channels 32 of the two
connectors 31 are crimped inwardly, as indicated by 33, to secure
the connectors to opposite portions of the cable.
To attach the connector 31 to the connector assembly 10,
the connector 31 is provided with a pair of side flanges 34 which
extend through the opening 14 in slide plate 15 and abut plate 11
inwardly of the flanges 12, A spring clip 35, as illustrated in
~ig. 8, serves to secure the connector 31 to the connector
assembly 10. The spring clip 35 is provided with a generally
U-shaped end 36 which is received within a pair of holes 37 in
the connector 31. The opposite end of the spring clip extends
between the tabs 23 and is bent vertically, as shown in Fig. 8,
to thereby secure the connector 31 to the connector assembly 10.
As previously described, the central section 1 is
adapted to be secured to a fixed support, such as a pedestal or
the central leg of an extension table. With the equalizer arrange-
ment provided by the cable 24 which is connected to the outer
sections 2 and 3 through the connector assemblies 10, extension
or retraction of either of the outer sections will result in a
corresponding extension or retraction of the other outer section
Thus, the table ends, which are connected to the outer sections
2 and 3, can be moved apart ~ithout movement of the central
pedestal or leg which is connected to the central section 1.
The equalizer slide assembly of the invention is a
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simplified construction in which the cable is connected to ~he
standard connector assemblies 10 which are employed to provide the
sliding connection between the central section 1 and the outer
sections 2 and 3. Thus, the same components can be utilized in
a standard slide assembly as well as an equalizer slide assembly
with the only addition for the equalizer slide assembly being the
cable 24, pulley assemblies 25, the connectors 31 and clips 35.
This reduces the economies of manufac~ure and enables standardized
items to be used for a wide variety o~ different slide assemblies.
~hile the illustrated embodiment has shown the slide
plate 15 as separating the adjacent sections 1, 2 and 3, to reduce
sliding friction, other types of fr~ction reducing elements, such
as projections, bosses, or the like, can be formed integrally
with, or secured to, one of the sections and positioned to ride
against the adjacent section during extension and contraction of
the assembly.
The above description has shown the use of the equalizer
slide assembly in connection with an extension table. It is con-
templated that the slide assembly can be used in any application
having a central fixed section and two or more outer sections
mounted to slide relative to the central section.
