Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
Q31
BACKGROUND OF INVENTION:
(a) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a drawer-like
container assembly which comprises a wire support frame
which is engageable under a shelf and which is provided
with a retention gate which is pivotally connected thereto
whereby to limit outward sliding displacement of the
container but permitting the container to be removed from
the frame by displacing the gate outwardly of the top end
of the container.
(b) Description of Prior Art
Various types of drawer-like container assemblies
whereby to support a container under a shelf are known.
However, these known types of assemblies have various
drawbacks. For example, some of these do not have any
means to prevent the drawer-like container from being
pulled entirely out of its support frame. Accordingly,
if the user pulls out the drawer excessively, the drawer
falls out of its support frame with its contents being
damaged. A common application of such drawer-like
containers is its use in hospitals wherein a plurality
of these containers are secured on a mobile frame. These
containers or baskets are usually filled with all types
of medical supplies, most of which are carried in glass
bottles and it can be appreciated that if one of these
containers becomes dislodged from its support frame, the
contents thereof will often be destroyed and cause injury
to bystanders.
There is also the need to provide a container
assembly whereby the assembly is light-weight and can
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easily be attached or detached from under a wire-like
shelf and wherein the container cannot slide off its
support frame unless a stop mechanism is released, but
wherein the drawer can easily be positioned within the
support frame.
SU~ARY OF INVENTION:
It is a feature of the present invention to
provide a drawer-like container assembly which substan-
tially overcomes all of the above-mentioned disadvantages
of the prior art.
It is a further feature of the present invention
to provide a light-weight drawer-like container assembly
comprising a support frame and an open-ended container and
wherein the assembly can be quickly and securely attached
to wire-like members and suspended therefrom.
Another feature of the present invention is to
provide a drawer-like container assembly incorporating
therein a retention gate which is automatically engaged
with the container when the container is slid within its
frame and which limits the outward sliding displacment
of the container in the frame.
It is a further feature of the present invention
to provide a drawer-like container assembly wherein the
support is constructed of wire meshing and the container
is an open-ended plastics container of light-weight
construction.
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According to the above features, from a broad
aspect, the present invention provides a drawer-like
container assembly comprising a wire support frame for
slidingly supporting a rectangular open-ended container
haviny opposed near and front walls and two side walls.
The side walls each have a flange connected to and protrud-
ing outwardly of the container in a peripheral region of
the op~n end. The frame has a pair of spaced elongated
container engaging channels for slidingly receiving the
flange on each respective side of the container. A gate
member is hinged to a front end of the frame above the
elongated channels. The gate member is positionable
internally of the container and has a free abutting end
to abut a rear portion of the end wall for retaining the
container in the frame and limiting outward sliding
displacement of the container when slidingly engaged by
the frame. The retention means is also positionable out-
wardly of the container to permit removal of the container
from the frame. Stop means is provided to abut the
container to limit inward sliding displacement thereof in
the support frame. The support frame has a wire frame
comprising at least two spaced apart longitudinal wire
members and a plurality of transverse wire members connected
to the longitudinal wire members to define a wire wall.
At least two of the transverse wire members near the ends
of the frame have downwardly extending U-shaped ends facing
inwardly under the top wall to define the elongated channel.
A straight wire is connected near the free end of the U-
shaped ends to constitute a support surface of the chanels.
A rear one of the U-shaped ends has a longer free end
portion than the other U-shaped ends to define an extension
portion to constitute the stop means.
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1219Q31
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF D~AWINGS:
A preferred embodiment of the present invention
will now be described with reference to the example
thereof as illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in
which:
FIGURE 1 is a perspective fragmented view of
the drawer-like container assembly of the present invention;
FIGURE 2 is a fragmented side section view
illustrating the positioning of a drawer within the support
frame adjacent the retention gate,
FIGURES 3 and 4 are respective section views,
similar to Figure 2, showing the operation of the retention
gate, and
FIGURE 5 is a front section view across the
drawer showing the position of the retention gate and the
rear stop member.
DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS:
Referring now to the drawings, and ~lore parti-
cularly to Figure 1, there is shown generally at 10 the
A
1:~1903~
drawer-like container assembly which comprises essentially
a support frame 11 and a rectangular open-ended container
12. The container as herein shown is a plastic container
having an outwardly extending peripheral flange 13 about
its top open end 14. The flange has a flat bottom wall
15 and an upwardly extending end wall 16. This flange
constitutes engageable side support members above the side
walls 12' of the container.
The support frame, as herein shown, is consti-
tuted by a top wall formed of at least two spaced apart
longitudinal wire members 17 and a plurality of transverse
wire members 18 connected to the longitudinal wire members
17 by means such as spot welds. At least two, herein
three, of the transverse wire members and namely, members
18', are provided with opposed U-shaped ends with their
free ends facing inwardly under the top wall formed by the
wire members 17 and 18 to define a pair of spaced apart
elongated container engaging means in the form of channels
for slidingly receiving the flanges 13 at the top end of
the side walls 12' of the container 12. A straight wire
19 is connected near the free end 20 of the U-shaped ends
of the transverse wire members to constitute a support
surface on which the bottom wall 15 of the side wall
flanges 13 are supported.
The rear one of the transverse wire members 18'
has its U-shaped end having a longer free end portion 21
to define a stop means whereby to abut against the rear
wall 12" of the container when the container is pushed
fully within the support frame 11 to prevent the container
from sliding out the other end. The position of this
stop means is illustrated in Figure 5.
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Referring now additionally to the other drawings,
in order to prevent the drawer 12 from being slid
accidentally out of its support frame 11 when slidingly
engaged thereby, there is provided a retention means in
the form of a retention gate 22. This gate 22 is formed
as an elongated U-shaped wire member having short side
arms 23 and a long interconnecting arm 24. The short
side arms 23 have a loop-shaped free end portion 25 which
is secured about the forward one of the transverse wire
members 18' for pivotal displacement of the gate about
the wire member 18'~ The other end of the short side arms
23 has a bent shoulder portion 26 to define an abutting
end with the long interconnecting arm extending from an
upper end of the shoulder portions 26.
The operation of the gate member is illustrated
in Figures 2 to 4. As therein shown, the long inter-
connecting arm 24 of the gate member is disposed above
the longitudinal wire members 17 and rests thereon to
support the shoulder portions 26 slightly elevated from
the flange bottom wall 15 but extending sufficiently
within the channels whereby to locate itself closely
spaced above the bottom wall 15 of the flange internally
of the drawer w~en the drawer is engaged between the
channels. As shown in Figure 2, the retention gate 22
is in its position of rest or engagement. As the drawer
12 is pushed within the frame with its flange 13 engaged
in respective channels, the flange on top of the foremost
end wall of the container will push against the short arms
23 of the gate thereby lifting the gate upwardly in the
direction of arrow 28 to permit entry of the container
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within the support member 11. As soon as the flange
passes the shoulder portion 26 of the gate, the gate
will then assume its position of rest, as shown in
Figure 4, and locate itself internally of the container
above the flange. Accordingly, the drawer can no longer
be pulled out of the frame as the shoulder portion 26
will abut against the upwardly extending side wall
portion 16 of the flange disposed above the rear wall 12"
of the container. In order to disengage the gate member
22 from the container, it is only necessary to grasp
with the fingers and move it upwardly to the position
as shown in phantom lines 29 in Figure 4, and pull the
drawer out.
In order to attach or suspend the support frame
11 from a wire shelf, such as shown in phantom lines 30
in Figure 2 or other attachment-like structure, there is
provided support means in the form of an upward vertical
end extension at opposed ends of the longitudinal wire
members 17, which extension terminates in a hook end 17'
with the opening of all four hooks facing in a common
direction. Thus, the support frame 11 is quickly and
securely attached to cross-wires of a support shelf and
depends thereunder in parallel relationship with the
shelf.
It is within the ambit of the present invention
to cover any obvious modifications of the example of the
preferred embodiment described herein. For example, the
container may have support flanges at the top end of its
side walls orlly, or else may have two or more short
support flanges spaced apart on the top of each side wall.
1219Q31
The shoulder portion 26 of the gate member could then
be shaped differently whereby to protrude lower than
the channel members and inwardly of the container and
abut against the rear wall 12~ of the container. Also,
the gate may be formed as a shorter U-shaped wire member
and located centrally of the container but being supported
by some of the wires in the top wall of the support frame
not to fall freely within the container and obstruct
material contained therein. However, the preferred gate
construction is that shown in the drawings wherein the
gate cannot obstruct any products contained within the
container as it is disposed outwardly of the container
side walls.
A specific application of the drawer-like
container assembly as disclosed herein is for use in
hospital dollies where a mobile frame is provided with
a plurality of spaced apart vertical shelves and one of
these assemblies is suspended from each of the shelves.
This container assembly also has a multitude of other
applications such as in the food industry, needle trade,
etc.
