TWI854689B - A pulling force adjustable slide rail for a drawer - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a pulling force adjustable slide rail for a drawer comprising a fastening holder, a sliding member, a spring connecting member, a damper, a spring, and an adjusting member. The fastening holder has an adjustable space. The sliding member is movably connected to the fastening holder. The spring connecting member is movably positioned on the adjustable space of the fastening holder. The spring is connected between the sliding member and the spring connecting member. The adjusting member is assembled on the fastening holder and the spring connecting member is inserted into the adjustable space of the fastening holder. The adjusting member can rotate relatives to the fastening holder making the spring connecting member be pushed by the adjusting member and shift along a linear direction. The space between the spring connecting member and the sliding member will be changed when the spring connecting member shifts relatives to the fastening holder so that the pulling force that the spring put on the sliding member and the fastening holder can be adjusted and make the user be able to control the strength of open and close of the drawer and also slowing down the time when the drawer closing.

Description

Drawer slides with adjustable tension

The present invention relates to a slide rail mechanism installed on both sides of a drawer, in particular to a drawer slide rail that allows the user to adjust the opening and closing force and buffer time by themselves.

Traditional drawer slides are equipped with a closing mechanism to achieve automatic backward return and closure, and a buffer (hydraulic cylinder or oil cylinder) is used to buffer the force of the drawer returning backward during the drawer closing process, so that the drawer will not collide with the outer frame loudly when it is pushed by excessive external force.

Most of these drawers with a cushioning closing function are equipped with springs to achieve an automatic closing effect. However, the spring design is often unable to adjust the tension, which often causes inconvenience in different usage situations. If the drawer is loaded with too heavy items, the automatic closing action will not be smooth due to insufficient spring tension. On the contrary, if the drawer is loaded with too light items, the spring tension will be too large, causing noise and vibration. Therefore, drawers for different purposes often require drawer slides with different tensions to be installed, causing manufacturers to have many drawer slides for different purposes.

In view of the fact that the tension of traditional drawer slides cannot be adjusted, patent No. TWI516231 discloses a hidden slide with adjustable tension. This hidden slide uses a spring adjustment member in combination with a spring adjustment seat having multiple (4) grooves. By changing the linear position of the spring adjustment seat, multi-stage position adjustment can be achieved, so that the stretch length of the spring can be changed to multiple (4) different lengths.

However, although this type of hidden slide can adjust the tension, it can only adjust the tension within a few predetermined values. For a single drawer slide to be applied to drawers in various fields, the tension adjustment range is still insufficient.

The main purpose of the present invention is to provide a drawer slide rail that changes the spring length by rotating the adjustment piece, thereby changing the opening and closing force and buffer closing time of the drawer, so that the user can adjust it to the best usage state that meets personal needs.

The secondary purpose of the present invention is that the adjustment member can rotate between 0 and 180 degrees and can be stopped at any angle, so that the spring can be adjusted to the required size within a length range without steps, thereby improving the practicality of the drawer slide.

Another purpose of the present invention is to enable all components of the drawer slide to be assembled directly by hand without the need for additional hand tools, thereby simplifying the assembly method of the drawer slide and saving assembly time.

To achieve the above-mentioned purpose, the drawer slide rail with adjustable tension of the present invention comprises: a fixed bracket, a sliding member, a spring connector, a damper, a spring and an adjustment member, wherein the fixed bracket is configured with an adjustment space; the sliding member can be movably assembled on the fixed bracket; the spring connector can be movably arranged in the adjustment space; the damper is connected between the sliding member and the fixed bracket; the spring is connected between the sliding member and the spring connector; and the adjustment member is assembled on the fixed bracket, and the spring connector is inserted in the adjustment space.

The adjusting member of the present invention can rotate relative to the fixed bracket, so that the spring connecting member is pushed by the adjusting member and moves along a straight line path; when the spring connecting member and the fixed bracket are displaced relative to each other, a spacing distance formed between the spring connecting member and the sliding member will be changed.

In a feasible embodiment, the fixing bracket has a receiving groove for fixing the damper, a track portion extending outwardly in cooperation with the receiving groove, and a first channel connected to the adjustment space; the sliding member has a groove track assembled in cooperation with the track portion and a second channel aligned with the first channel, and the spring is arranged in the first channel and the second channel to connect the sliding member and the spring connecting member.

The track portion has a moving groove, and the sliding member has a deflectable latch portion to be inserted into the moving groove; the moving groove is sequentially provided with a straight track and a curved track, and when the latch portion of the sliding member moves from the straight track to the curved track, the latch portion will deflect from an initial position to a latching position, so that the sliding member is temporarily stopped and cannot be displaced relative to the fixed bracket.

The adjustment part includes a stop portion that can contact the fixed bracket, the top surface of the stop portion is provided with an engaging portion that can be inserted by a hand tool, the bottom surface of the stop portion extends an insertion portion, and the surrounding structure of the stop portion is provided with a plurality of inwardly recessed card slots and a plurality of outwardly protruding card blocks.

The spring connector has a linear slot longer than the insertion portion and a clamping wall capable of positioning the spring, and the end of the spring has a concave portion of reduced diameter to match the contour of the clamping wall.

The adjusting member can be rotated to any angle by the hand tool to complete the stepless adjustment of the spacing distance, so that the spring connecting member can reciprocate on the straight path.

In addition, the fixing bracket has a side opening to connect to the adjustment space, and the side opening has an insertion area that conforms to a side view profile of the spring connector and a restriction area whose height is less than the side view profile, so that the spring connector can enter the adjustment space from the insertion area.

When the spring connector is connected to the adjustment member, the spring connector can only move along the straight path in the restricted area; when the spring connector is separated from the adjustment member, the spring connector can leave the adjustment space from the insertion area.

The feature of the present invention is that the adjustment part is connected to the fixed bracket by screw connection, so that the adjustment part can be rotated from 0 to 180 degrees relative to the fixed device, and can be stopped at any angle at will, so that the spring connector can be moved along a straight line path. In this way, the spring can be adjusted to the required size within a length range without steps, and the opening and closing force and buffer closing time of the drawer can be changed simultaneously. The user will be able to independently adjust the tension to the best use state in accordance with the actual situation.

1: Drawer slide rails

2:Fix the bracket

21: Headquarters

211: Adjust space

212: Storage tank

213: First channel

214:Connection plate

215:Connection interface

216: Connecting opening

22:Track Department

221: Movement slot

222: Straight track

223: Curved track

23: Side opening

231: Insert area

232: Restricted area

3: Sliding parts

31: Sliding part

311: Groove

312: Second channel

313: Groove

314: Sliding hole

315: hinge block

316: Stop wall

32: Tenon part

321:Block

322:Pull

323: hinge hole

324:Guide rod

33: Positioning slot

4: Adjustment parts

41: Stop Department

411: Card slot

412: Card block

42: Insertion part

43: Fitting part

5: Spring connector

51: Straight slot

52: Clamping wall

6: Damper

61: Main body

62: Telescopic parts

7: Spring

71: Depression

D: Spacing distance

P: Straight path

FIG1 is a three-dimensional diagram of the drawer slide of the present invention; FIG2 is an exploded diagram of FIG1; FIG3 is a cross-sectional diagram of the fixed bracket AA” line segment; FIG4 is a cross-sectional diagram of the fixed bracket BB” line segment; FIG5 is a side view of the fixed bracket; FIG6 is a cross-sectional diagram of the slide mounted on the fixed bracket; FIG7 is a bottom view of the exploded slide; FIG8 is a schematic diagram of the spring mounted on the fixed bracket and the slide; FIG9A to FIG9C are schematic diagrams of the present invention changing the position of the spring connector by rotating the adjustment member; and FIG10A and FIG10C are schematic diagrams of the slide of the present invention moving from the initial position to the stop position.

In order to facilitate a deeper, clear, detailed understanding and knowledge of the structure, use and features of the present invention, a better embodiment is provided and described in detail with diagrams as follows:

The drawer slide rail 1 with adjustable tension of the present invention is mainly installed between a cabinet and a drawer, and is usually installed in groups of two on both sides of the drawer, so that the drawer can be restricted by the drawer slide rail 1 and move in a straight line.

Please refer to Figures 1 and 2. The drawer slide rail 1 includes: a fixed bracket 2, a sliding member 3, an adjusting member 4, a spring connecting member 5, a damper 6 and two springs 7. The fixed bracket 2 includes a body 21 and a track portion 22. The body 21 has an adjustment space 211, a receiving groove 212 capable of fixing the damper 6, and two first channels 213. The track portion 22 has a moving groove 221, and the moving groove 221 is sequentially provided with a straight track 222 and a curved track 223.

Please refer to Figures 3 and 4. The adjustment space 211, the receiving groove 212 and the track portion 22 are arranged in sequence along the straight line direction, and the main body 21 is provided with a connecting plate 214 forming a connecting port 215 above the adjustment space 211; the receiving groove 212 is provided with a connecting opening 216 adjacent to the track portion 22, and the receiving groove 212 is not connected to the adjustment space 211; the two first channels 213 are respectively provided on opposite sides of the receiving groove 212, and the two first channels 213 are directly connected to the adjustment space 211.

As shown in FIG. 5 , one end of the body 21 has two side openings 23 connected to the adjustment space 211. The side opening 23 has an insertion area 231 larger than a side view outline of the spring connector 5 and a restriction area 232 with a height less than the side view outline, so that the spring connector 5 can enter the adjustment space 211 from the insertion area 231.

Please refer to FIG. 2 again. The adjusting member 4 enters from the connecting port 215 to be assembled on the connecting plate 214 of the fixing bracket 2. The adjusting member 4 includes a stop portion 41 that can contact the connecting plate 214 and an insertion portion 42 extending from the bottom surface of the stop portion 41. The top surface of the stop portion 41 is provided with an engaging portion 43 that can be inserted by a hand tool. As shown in the figure, the surrounding structure of the stop portion 41 has a plurality of inwardly recessed card slots 411 and a plurality of outwardly protruding card blocks 412, and each card slot 411 is located between two of the plurality of card blocks 412.

However, the structural description of the above adjustment member 4 is only for the convenience of illustration, that is, the stop portion 41 can also be designed to have a sufficient thickness to protrude above the connecting plate 214, so that the user can directly turn the stop portion 41 by hand (not shown).

Please refer to Figures 6 and 7. The sliding member 3 can be movably assembled on the track portion 22 of the fixed bracket 2. The sliding member 3 includes a sliding portion 31 and a tenon portion 32 that can be deflected. The sliding portion 31 has a groove 311 assembled with the track portion 22 and two second channels 312 to align the two first channels 213 respectively; as shown in the figure, the top of the groove 311 has a groove 313, a sliding hole 314 connected to the groove 313, and a hinge block 315 in the groove 313. The two second channels 312 have a stop wall 316 that reduces the channel size to fix the spring 7.

The latch portion 32 has a baffle plate 321 with a smaller profile than the groove 313, a lever 322 extending upward from the baffle plate 321, a pivot hole 323 formed in the baffle plate 321, and a guide rod 324 extending downward from the baffle plate 321, wherein the baffle plate 321 is disposed in the groove 313 so that the pivot block 315 is connected and inserted into the pivot hole 323; the lever 322 passes through the sliding hole 314 and is exposed outside the sliding portion 31; and the guide rod 324 can be inserted into the moving groove 221.

Please refer to Figure 2 again. The spring connector 5 can be movably arranged in the adjustment space 211 of the fixed bracket 2. The center of the spring connector 5 has a straight slot 51 whose length is greater than the insertion portion 42. The two sides of the spring connector 5 are respectively provided with a clamping wall 52 for the spring 7 to pass through, and the spring 7 is fixed by the clamping wall 52.

When the linear slot of the spring connector 5 is connected by the insertion portion 42, the spring connector 5 can only move along a linear path P in the restricted area 232 (see FIG. 5 ); when the spring connector 5 is separated from the adjustment member 4, the spring connector 5 can leave the adjustment space 211 from the insertion area 231.

The damper 6 is connected between the sliding member 3 and the fixed bracket 2, and has a main body 61 positioned in the receiving groove 212 and a telescopic member 62 passing through the connecting opening 216. The telescopic member 62 is fixed in a positioning groove 33 of the sliding member 3.

Please refer to FIG. 8 , the two springs 7 are connected between the sliding member 3 and the spring connector 5 , the spring 7 is disposed in the first channel 213 and the second channel 312 to connect the sliding member 3 and the spring connector 5 , and the end of the spring 7 has a concave portion 71 of reduced diameter to match the contour of the stop wall 316 and the contour of the clamping wall 52 .

Please refer to Figures 9A to 9C. The adjusting member 4 of the present invention can rotate relative to the fixed bracket 2, so that the spring connecting member 5 is pushed by the adjusting member 4 and moves along the straight path P; when the spring connecting member 5 and the fixed bracket 2 are relatively displaced, a spacing distance D formed between the spring connecting member 5 and the sliding member 3 will be changed (see Figure 8).

As shown in FIG. 9A , when the arrow on the adjustment member 4 is in an initial state at the upper position, the spring connector 5 stops completely in the restricted area 232, and at the same time, the spacing distance D will be formed into a shortest spacing.

As shown in FIG. 9B , when the marking arrow is rotated to the right to an adjustment state, the spring connector will be moved linearly in the restriction area 232; at this time, the spacing distance D will be changed from the shortest spacing to an adjustment spacing.

As shown in FIG. 9C , when the marking arrow is rotated to a lower limit state, the spring connector 5 will be continuously moved in a straight line, so that one portion of the spring connector 5 is distributed in the limiting area 232 and the other portion is distributed in the insertion area 231; at this time, the spacing distance D will be changed from the adjustment spacing to a maximum spacing.

The adjusting member 4 of the present invention can be rotated to any angle by the hand tool to complete the stepless adjustment of the spacing distance D, so that the spring connecting member 5 can reciprocate on the straight path P.

Please refer to FIG. 10A , when the drawer slide rail 1 of the present invention is not used, the slide member 3 contacts the main body 21 , at which time the latch portion 32 is located in the linear track 222 of the moving groove 221 and remains in an initial position that has not yet deviated.

Please refer to FIG. 10B . When the sliding member 3 is separated from the main body 21 , the sliding member 3 will move along the straight path P. At this time, the latch portion 32 is still moving in the straight track 222 , and the latch portion 32 is also kept in the initial position.

Please refer to FIG. 10C . After the latch portion 32 moves from the straight track 222 to the curved track 223 , the latch portion 32 will deflect from the initial position to a stop position, so that the sliding member 3 is temporarily stopped and cannot move relative to the fixed bracket 2 .

1: Drawer slide rails

2:Fix the bracket

21: Headquarters

211: Adjust space

212: Storage tank

213: First channel

22:Track Department

3: Sliding parts

31: Sliding part

311: Groove

312: Second channel

313: Groove

314: Sliding hole

315: hinge block

316: Stop wall

32: Tenon part

321:Block

322:Pull

323: hinge hole

324:Guide rod

33: Positioning slot

4: Adjustment parts

41: Stop Department

411: Card slot

412: Card block

42: Insertion part

5: Spring connector

51: Straight slot

52: Clamping wall

6: Damper

61: Main body

62: Telescopic parts

7: Spring

71: Depression

Claims (7)

A drawer slide rail with adjustable tension comprises: a fixed bracket, which is configured with an adjustment space; a sliding member, which can be movably assembled on the fixed bracket; a spring connecting member, which can be movably arranged in the adjustment space; a damper, which is connected between the sliding member and the fixed bracket; a spring, which is connected between the sliding member and the spring connecting member; and an adjusting member, which is assembled on the fixed bracket and inserted into the spring connecting member in the adjustment space; wherein the adjusting member can rotate relative to the fixed bracket so that The spring connector is pushed by the adjusting member and moves along a straight path; when the spring connector and the fixed bracket are displaced relative to each other, a spacing distance formed between the spring connector and the sliding member will be changed; wherein the adjusting member includes a stop portion that can contact the fixed bracket, the top surface of the stop portion is provided with an engaging portion that can be inserted by a hand tool, the bottom surface of the stop portion extends an insertion portion, and the surrounding structure of the stop portion is provided with a plurality of inwardly recessed card slots and a plurality of outwardly protruding card blocks. The drawer slide rail with adjustable tension as described in claim 1, wherein the fixed bracket has a receiving groove for fixing the damper, a track portion extending outwardly in cooperation with the receiving groove, and a first channel connected to the adjustment space; the sliding member has a groove track assembled in cooperation with the track portion and a second channel aligned with the first channel, and the spring is arranged in the first channel and the second channel to connect the sliding member and the spring connector. The drawer slide rail with adjustable tension as described in claim 2, wherein the rail portion has a moving groove, and the slide member has a deflectable latch portion to be inserted into the moving groove; the moving groove is sequentially provided with a straight track and a curved track, and when the latch portion of the slide member moves from the straight track to the curved track, the latch portion will deflect from an initial position to a latching position, so that the slide member is temporarily stopped and cannot be displaced relative to the fixed bracket. The drawer slide rail with adjustable tension as described in claim 1, wherein the spring connector has a linear slot hole longer than the insertion portion and a clamping wall capable of positioning the spring, and the end of the spring has a concave portion with a reduced diameter to match the contour of the clamping wall. A drawer slide with adjustable tension as described in claim 1, wherein the adjustment member can be rotated to any angle by the hand tool to complete the stepless adjustment of the spacing distance, so that the spring connector can reciprocate on the straight path. The drawer slide rail with adjustable tension as described in claim 1, wherein the fixed bracket has a side opening to connect the adjustment space, and the side opening has an insertion area that conforms to a side profile of the spring connector and a restriction area whose height is less than the side profile, so that the spring connector can enter the adjustment space from the insertion area. A drawer slide with adjustable tension as described in claim 6, wherein, when the spring connector is connected to the adjusting member, the spring connector can only move along the straight path in the restricted area; when the spring connector is separated from the adjusting member, the spring connector can leave the adjustment space from the insertion area.

Images