US2905517A - Elevator shelves - Google Patents

Description

P 22, 1959. T. E. MEAD 2,905,517

ELEVATOR SHELVES Filed Nov. 5, 1956 v 5 Sheets-Sheet 1' INVE N TOR:

M Jdh r W ATTORNEY 1 p 1 59 T. E. MEAD 2,905,517.

ELEVATOR SHELVES flwmg 072%, aw r W ATTORNE S.

ELEVATOR SHELVES Theodore E. Mead, Wilmette, Ill.

Application November 5, 1956, Serial No. 620,400

2 Claims. (Cl. 312-268) This invention relates to elevator shelves, and more particularly to cabinets or compartments equipped with elevator shelves which may be moved upwardly or downwardly for the serving of objects carried by the shelves.

An object of the present invention is to provide a compact cabinet or storage compartment equipped with means for the raising and lowering of objects while maintaining the shelves in article-supporting position at all points along their travel. A further object is to provide an elevator shelf structure driven by motor means for the serving of articles upon shelves to a point of convenient reach and for the removal and insertion of articles onto the shelves. A still further object is to provide a shelf elevator structure in which there is a minimum of noise and frictional engagement of parts, while at the same time maintaining the shelves from swaying during travel in their vertical paths. A still further object is to provide in such a structure means for maintaining a shelf in a generally horizontal position as it travels by a sprocket from one vertical path into another vertical path. Yet another object is to provide, in combination with a series of shelves, endless conveyor means for releasably supporting said shelves and for moving the same through vertical spaced-apart paths, whereby shelves can be stored in remote parts of a compartment or cabinet and then quickly brought into alignment with a discharge or receiving port arranged at a convenient elevation. Other specific objects and advantages will appear as the specification proceeds.

The invention is shown, in an illustrative embodiment, by the accompanying drawings, in which Figure l is a prospective view of a cabinet structure equipped with means embodying my invention; Fig. 2, an enlarged vertical sectional view of the cabinet struc- Patented Sept. 22, 1959 structure. For the purpose of illustration, the invention will be described herein more specifically in connection with a kitchen cabinet.

Mounted within the cabinet A, and preferably about centrally thereof, is a divider or stabilizer plate 12, as shown best in Fig. 4, so that there is provided within the cabinet a vertical channel 13 on the front side, and a vertical channel 14 on the rear side, for the travel therein of the shelves 15. The vertical channel 13 communicates with the rear vertical channel 14 both at the top and at the bottom of the cabinet, so that a continuous course of travel is provided for the shelves in their movement upwardly through one of the channels and downwardly through the other.

For supporting the shelves within the channels, I provide two endless conveyor chains 16 and 17. The chains mesh at their lower ends respectively with sprockets 18 and 19 carried on the driven shaft 20. The shaft 20 v at its other end with an adjustment slot 24, as shown best in Fig. 4, the slot being adapted to receive a screw 25 for the securing of the lever 21 in adjusted position.

By this means, the position of shaft 20 can be vertically adjusted to compensate for wear of the chain 16 and 17, and for tightening them.

A sprocket 26 is keyed or otherwise secured to the I In the specific 1 shaft 20 for the driving of the shaft. illustration given, an endless chain 27 connects sprocket 26 and the motor-driven sprocket 28 mounted upon the shaft 29. The shaft 29 is driven through reduction gears by the motor 30 mounted on bracket 31 at the top of the cabinet A, as shown best in Fig. 2. The bracket 31 is adjustably supported upon the casing A by means of screws 32 which extend through adjustment slots 33 carried by a depending flange portion of the bracket 31.

* By moving the motor bracket31 in a vertical direction,

ture shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 3, a side view in elevation of the shelves being removed from the cabinet; Fig. '6, a

detail sectional view, the section being taken'as indicated at line 6-6 of Fig. 5; Fig. 7, a perspective view of the conveyor chain structure and drive mechanism, the parts being shown in spaced-apart relation; and Fig. 8, an en larged broken detail sectional view of an individual shelf which may be employed with the elevator'structure.

In the illustration given, A designates a casing structure which may be of any suitable type or construction. In the illustration given, the casing A provides a cabinet which is illustrated as a kitchen cabinet having an open front side provided with. doors 10. As indicated in Fig. 1, the cabinet is mounted in the upper portion of a kitchen above a lower, cabinet structure 11. It will be under.- stood, however, that the cabinet may be mounted in any part of the kitchen or in any other room, and the cabinet may extend from the floor to the ceiling or through any intermediate portion of the room. The cabinet is also applicable to other rooms such as work shops, factories, stores, and a variety of other types of the drive chain 27 can be adjusted independently of the adjustment of the drive shaft 20.

The shelves may be of any suitable shape or construction. I prefer to employ shelves of the shape indicated, with the corners beveled to facilitate the movement vide each bucket with an enlarged opening 36 adapted to receive one of the studs 37 carried by the chains 16 and 17. Above the enlarged portion 36 is a narrowportion 38.which confines the headed lug 37 in position I It will be understood that the shelf 15, as shown more clearly in Fig. 8, is provided on each side 1 on the bucket.

with the enlarged opening 36 and the restricted narrow opening 28 thereabove, and that the restricted portion of the lug 37 is received within the narrow neck portion 38,

the lug being carried by the chain 17, as illutsrated in detail in Fig. 8. The shelf 15 may, if desired, be pro-' vided with inwardly-extending flanges 39 adapted to receive trays 40 thereon.

.The elevator chains 16 and 17 are preferably supported f at their upper ends so that there is no continuous shaft' extending through the cabinet. In the illustration given,

the chain 16 engages the upper sprocket 41, while thechain 17 engages the upper sprocket 4-2. Each of the sprockets is held in rotatable position by a stud 43 which is carried by a plate 44 secured to the casing A. The stud extends through the hub of the sprocket and is preferably provided at its inner end with a slip-ring 45 forconfining the sprocket upon the hub. A similar shpring 46 rnay be employed for the securing of the shaft 20 within the recess provided by the member 21.

An important problem in the development of the elevator shelfstructure' liesin the maintenance of each shelf against tipping, since tipping couldbefatal to the operation of a shelf device in which articles of various types and sizes are stored. To prevent tippingof' the shelf as it passesupwardly al'ong'channel 13 and then is moved downwardly through channel 14, P provide a multiple guide member 47 having'a horizontal lower edge 48 engageable with the horizontal flange 35 of each shelf to maintain the shelf in a horizontal position asit is transfered between the channels at the upperpart of the case; Asshown more clearly in Figs. 2 and 3, a-member 47 issecured by spot-welding or other meansto an elongated bar-49 which-is'guided between straps 50 and 51 and a coil spring 52 extends between alug 53' fixed to casing A and a pin- 54-carried by the lower end of bar 49. By this means, the flange or shoe 48-bears tightly against the flange35 of each shelf so as to stabilize the shelf as it movesfrom' channel 13' to channel 14 or, vice versa, if the direction'of movement is reversed.

In order to prevent frictional engagement between each shelf 15 and the chain 16 or 17, Iprefer to indentthe-side walls of the shelf or bucket 15 as shown best in'Fig-S. It Will be noted that the portion of the bucket bearing the slots 36 and 38 lies in a. plane outwardly of the plane of the depending side walls so that a quiet operation of the elevator shelf mechanism is brought about.

To reinforce the metal casing A, vertical reinforcing straps 55 may be secured to the side walls of casing A by means of spot-welding 56, or by other means, Thecasing A is provided along its front side with inwardlyturned vertical flanges 57 which may be provided with lining strips 58 engageable with the front edges of the shelves 15 to maintain them against outward tipping. A- similar wear strip 59 may be provided along the rearside' of the casing A.

Operation In theoperation of the structure, the-shelves 15 may be inserted in position upon the lugs 37 of the chains. 16 and 17 so that they are supported in the position illustrated. best in Figs. 2 and 4. With the structure shown, the shelves 15 may be detached or secured in position, using the keyhole slot structures 36 and 38 illustrated. With the shelves in position, articles may be placed with in. the shelves and the motor. 30 started for operation in.

along the channels, they are stabihzed along their. rear side by engagement with the wear strip 59 in channel. 14 and the central partition strip 12, while in the travel through channel 13, the shelves IS-are maintained against tipping by the wear strips 58 along the front flange 57 of casing A and by the central partition strip 12.. The motor may be stopped at any point to bring a selected shelf into alignment in any convenient position for easy access with the open front side'of casing A so as to permit. the removal of articles or the addition of articles- As' above stated, the shelves may be removed andv replaced asdesired.

Should conveyor chains 16 and 17 wear and become loose, tightening can be elfected by loosening the. screws 22 and lowering the levers 21 and then tightening the screws within the slots 24- of the strips 21'. On the other hand, if the drive chain 27 should require tightening or loosening independently of the chains 16 and 17, this may be readily accomplished by loosening screws 32 and shifting the motor mounting 31 to bring about such tightening or loosening.

The shelf and case structure: may be utilized in many different arrangementsandemployed. at. any height in a workshop, kitchen, etc. With the structure shown, shelves may be extended downwardly along corners in a room or near the bottom of a room where access is difficult, or the shelves may'be' extended substantially to the ceiling of a high room structure; thus enabling; space to be utilized which is today not practical, the motor-driven structure permitting articles to be conveyed rapidly from distant points to an open access area located at a convenient height.

While, in the foregoing specification, I have set. forth a specific structure in'consid'erable detail for the purpose of illustrating theinvention, such. details of structure may be varied widely bythose skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of myinvention.

I. claim:

1. In an elevator shelf. structure, a generally rectangular casing comprising a closed compartment except for an access opening in the vertically-extending front, spaced endlessconveyors mounted therein for vertical movement and adjacent a pair of opposite side walls of saidcompartment, a plurality ofequally spaced studs on said conveyors, shelves releasably carried bysaid studs between said conveyors, each of said shelves having a generally horizontally-disposed base and vertically upstanding side walls parallel to the casing side walls, each shelf side wall being equipped with an integral, laterally-extending, inclined shoulder adjacent to but spaced from the top thereof, said shoulder extending across the side wall parallel to said base and, in effect, providing a sloping step in said side wall, with the upper side wall portion lying outwardly of the lower side wall portion, a keyhole-shaped slot in each side wall receiving a chain stud,, the restricted portion of said slot being located in said upper side wall portion and. the remaining portion of' the slot being located in the said inclined shoulder, means. for driving said conveyors, and means for maintaining, said shelves in level, horizontal plane during use.

2. In an elevator shelf structure, a casing providing a compartment, spaced sprockets supported in said compartment near the top thereof, spaced sprockets carried by a; driven shaft extending through the lower portion of said compartment, chains carried by said sprockets and provided with inwardly-extending studs, and a plurality of shelves releasably supported upon the studs of said chains, each of said shelves having a generally horizontally disposed base and vertically upstanding side walls, each side wall adjacent to but spaced from the top thereof being equipped with an outwardly and upwardly-inclined shoulder extending across the width of said side wall. parallel to said base, a vertically elongated opening in each side wall located in both the said shoulder and the portion of said side wall immediately thereabove, said studs being received within the side wall openings.

References Cited in' the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,030,741 Bodine Feb. 11, 1936 2,442,070 Bouchard May 25, 1948 2,673,780 Lyon Mar. 30, 1954 2,729,531 Andersen Jan. 3, 1956-

Images