Workroom storage system

• US 20040251227A1
• Filed: 01/16/2004
• Published: 12/16/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 06/16/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Whirlpool Corporation
• Original Assignee: Whirlpool Corporation
• Inventors: Kendall, James W., Stewart, Brian J., Perkins, Travis M., Cline, Wyatt A., Junge, Brent A., Starr, Todd Christopher, Schmidt, Duane E., Stout, Mark A., Rasche, Kenneth J., Sampson, Tyree E., Tolliver, Steven E., Arent, Thomas Wesley
• Granted Patent: US 7,228,977 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 211/189
• CPC Class Codes: A47B 21/06 characterised by means for holding, fastening or concealing cables
• CPC Class Codes: A47B 31/00 Service or tea tables, trolleys, or wagons serving trays A47G23/06; features relating to running gear or to movement by hand B62B
• CPC Class Codes: A47B 83/001 Office desks or work-stations combined with other pieces of furniture, e.g. work space management systems
• CPC Class Codes: A47B 95/008 Suspension fittings for cabinets to be hung on walls
• CPC Class Codes: A47B 96/067 Horizontal rails as suspension means in a cantilever arrangement suspension fittings for cabinets to be hung on walls A47B95/008
• CPC Class Codes: A47F 5/0018 Display racks with shelves or receptables racks per se A47B; storage devices for warehouses B65G1/02
• CPC Class Codes: A47F 5/0846 Display panels or rails with elongated channels; Sliders, brackets, shelves, or the like, slidably attached therein
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 13/512 Clamping devices for hanging the tools
• CPC Class Codes: B25H 1/02 of table type
• CPC Class Codes: B25H 3/028 by sliding extraction from within a common frame
• CPC Class Codes: B25H 3/04 Racks

Abstract

A space-efficient workroom organization system comprising a slotwall panel and/or slot track storage system with at least one repositionable slotwall or slot track mounted storage cabinet, and a workbench system comprising a workbench having a work surface and defining a storage recess beneath the work surface, with at least one mobile storage cabinet.

Claims

1. A slot track storage system comprising:

a slot track having a plurality of slots with at least one undercut sidewall wherein adjoining slots form a least one slat having edges defined by the slots, the slots further having a bottom wall generally parallel to and spaced inwardly from the face of the at least one slat; and

at least one removable mounting bracket comprising;

a support portion for attaching a device to the bracket;

a first “

J”

shaped hook on one edge of the support portion opening in a first direction to hook over an edge of the at least one slat into the undercut sidewall; and

a second “

J”

shaped hook on an opposite edge of the support portion opening in the first direction to hook over an edge of the adjoining slot into the undercut sidewall.

2. The slot track storage system of claim 1 wherein the plurality of slots have opposite undercut sidewalls.

3. The slot track storage system of claim 1 wherein the slot track includes two slots forming one slat.

4. The slot track storage system of claim 3 wherein the opening of the slots is wider than the width of the first and second “

J”

shaped hooks so that the mounting bracket can be mounted to the slot track by inserting the first and second “

J”

shaped hooks into adjacent slots.

5. The slot track storage system of claim 4 wherein each of the first and second “

J”

shaped hooks have a first leg extending in a direction generally perpendicular from an edge of the support portion and a second leg extending from the distal end of the first leg in a direction generally parallel to the support portion.

6. The slot track storage system of claim 5 wherein the second leg of the second “

J”

shaped hook is shorter than the second leg of the first “

J”

shaped hook whereby the first “

J”

shaped hook rests on an edge of a slat, and the second “

J”

shaped hook rests on the edge of the adjacent slot when the mounting bracket is loaded to cause the edge of the slat under the first “

J”

shaped hook to deform.

7. The slot track storage system of claim 1 wherein the plurality of slots and at least one slat extend longitudinally along the front surface of the slot track and the slot track includes top and bottom edges that are finished.

8. The slot track storage system of claim 7 wherein the top and bottom edges are tapered from the front surface toward the rear surface.

9. The slot track storage system of claim 1 wherein two or more slot tracks are vertically spaced and a plurality of mounting brackets are used to support a device on at least two vertically spaced slot tracks and at least two of the mounting brackets are vertically spaced on the device.

10. The slot track storage system of claim 9 wherein the two or more slot tracks are elongated tracks having a predetermined width, and at least two slot tracks are mounted on a wall spaced an integral multiple of the predetermined width apart wherein one or more additional slot tracks can subsequently be added between the at least two slot tracks.

11. The slot track storage system of claim 10 wherein the predetermined width is six inches and the at least two slot tracks are mounted eighteen inches apart on a wall so that one to three additional slot tracks can be mounted between the at least two slot tracks.

12. The slot track storage system of claim 9 wherein the first and second “

T”

shaped hooks on the mounting brackets can be simultaneously inserted into slots in the vertically spaced slot tracks without pivoting the brackets.

13. The slot track storage system of claim 9 wherein the device includes a housing and the plurality of mounting brackets are attached to the housing with bolts and the plurality of mounting brackets extend a substantial portion of the width of the housing.

14. The slot track storage system of claim 13 wherein a top mounting bracket is attached adjacent the top of the housing in a fixed vertical position on the housing.

15. The slot track storage system of claim 14 wherein at least one additional mounting bracket is attached to the housing below the top bracket in a position such that the first “

J”

shaped hook of the at least one additional bracket rests on an edge of a slot of a vertically spaced slot track.

16. The slot track storage system of claim 15 wherein holes in the housing for the bolts for attaching the top mounting bracket are round for attaching the top mounting bracket in a fixed vertical position, and the holes in the housing for the at least one additional mounting bracket are slots for vertically adjusting and attaching the at least one additional mounting bracket in a vertical position with the first “

J”

shaped hook resting on an edge of a slat of vertically spaced slot track.

17. The slot track storage system of claim 1 wherein the plurality of slots are generally “

T”

shaped having opposite undercut sidewalls that form at least one generally “

T”

shaped slat.

18. The slot track storage system of claim 17 wherein the mounting bracket further includes a spring arm extending from the first “

J”

hook generally in a direction opposite to the first direction to engage the underside of the undercut sidewall opposite the undercut sidewall of the generally “

T”

shaped slot forming the edge of the slat supporting the first “

J”

shaped hook.

19. The slot track storage system of claim 18 wherein the spring arm extends at an acute angle toward the face of the support portion to bias the bracket away from the slat when the mounting bracket is mounted on the slot track with the spring arm engaged with the underside of the undercut sidewall.

20. The slot track storage system of claim 19 wherein the second “

J”

shaped hook holds the mounting bracket adjacent the slat under tension of the spring arm whereby the spring arm provides a friction lock to hold the mounting bracket and device on the slot track against inadvertent removal.

21. A storage system comprising:

at least one slotwall panel having a plurality of slots with at least one undercut sidewall forming a plurality of slats having edges defined by the slots, the slots having a bottom wall generally parallel to and spaced inwardly from the face of the slats;

at least one slot track including two slots with at least one undercut sidewall forming a slat having edges defined by the slots, the slots having a bottom wall generally parallel to and spaced inwardly from the face of the slat; and

at least one removable mounting bracket usable on the slotwall panel and on the slot track comprising;

a support portion for attaching a device to the mounting bracket;

a first “

J”

shaped hook on one edge of the support portion opening in a first direction to hook over an edge of a slat; and

a second “

J”

shaped hook on an opposite edge of the support portion opening in the first direction to hook over an edge of the adjoining slot into the undercut sidewall.

22. The storage system of claim 21 wherein the slots in the slotwall panel and the slots in the slot track are generally “

T”

shaped having opposite undercut sidewalls that form generally “

T”

shaped slats.

23. The storage system of claim 22 wherein the mounting bracket further includes a spring arm extending from the first “

J”

hook generally in a direction opposite to the first direction to engage the underside of the undercut sidewall opposite the undercut sidewall of the generally “

T”

shaped slot forming the edge of the slat supporting the first “

J”

shaped hook on the slotwall panel or on the slot track.

24. The storage system of claim 23 wherein the spring arm extends at an acute angle toward the face of the support portion to bias the mounting bracket away from the slat when the mounting bracket is mounted on the slotwall panel or the slot track with the spring arm engaged with the underside of the undercut sidewall.

25. The storage system of claim 24 wherein the second “

J”

shaped hook holds the mounting bracket adjacent the slat under tension of the spring arm whereby the spring arm provides a friction lock to hold the mounting bracket and device on the slotwall panel or the slot track against inadvertent removal.

26. The storage system of claim 21 wherein two or more slot tracks are vertically spaced and a plurality of mounting brackets are used to support a device on at least two vertically spaced slot tracks and at least two of the mounting brackets are vertically spaced on the device.

27. The storage system of claim 26 wherein a plurality of mounting brackets are used to support a device on the slotwall panel and at least two of the mounting brackets are vertically spaced on the device.

28. The storage system of claim 21 wherein two or more slot tracks are mounted vertically spaced adjacent one or more slotwall panels such that the slots in the slot tracks align with the slots in the slotwall panel.

29. The slot track storage system of claim 28 wherein the two or more slot tracks are elongated tracks having a predetermined width, and at least two slot tracks are mounted on a wall spaced an integral multiple of the predetermined width apart wherein one or more additional slot tracks can subsequently be added between the at least two slot tracks.

30. The slot track storage system of claim 29 wherein the predetermined width is six inches and the at least two slot tracks are mounted eighteen inches apart on a wall so that one to three additional slot tracks can be mounted between the at least two slot tracks.

31. The storage system of claim 28 wherein a plurality of mounting brackets are used to support a device on the at least two vertically spaced slot tracks and on the one or more slotwall panels and at least two of the mounting brackets are vertically spaced on the device.

32. The storage system of claim 21 wherein the slotwall panels are elongated panels having a predetermined number (n) of “

T”

shaped slots forming (n−

1) full width “

T”

shaped slats, and wherein the slotwall panel has a first longitudinal edge having a first half width slat and a first connector, and a second longitudinal edge having a second half width slat and a second mating connector, whereby slotwall panels can be joined together longitudinally such that the first and second connectors mate and the first and second half width slats abut one another forming a full width slat, and whereby the slotwall panels are joined in an area where torsional loads are minimal on the slotwall panel.

33. The storage system of claim 32 wherein a slot track further includes a first longitudinal edge having a first half width slat and a first connector, whereby a slot track can be joined longitudinally with a slotwall panel whereby the slot track provides a finished edge to the slotwall panel.

34. The storage system of claim 32 wherein two or more slot tracks are vertically spaced and a plurality of mounting brackets are used to support a device on the at least two vertically spaced slot tracks and on a slotwall panel and at least two of the mounting brackets are vertically spaced on the device to mount the device on the slotwall panel and on the vertically spaced slot tracks.

35. The storage system of claim 21 wherein the slotwall panel and the slot track are foamed plastic material.

36. The storage system of claim 35 wherein the slotwall panel and the slot track are extruded foamed material including polyvinyl chloride.

37. A workroom organization system for space-efficient, organized storage of workroom items, such as tools and supplies used in a workroom, comprising:

a plurality of slot tracks mountable on a wall of the workroom each having at least two slots defining at least one slat;

a plurality of removable mounting brackets having a first “

J”

shaped hook on one edge opening in a first direction to hook over an edge of the at least one slat on the slot tracks and a second “

J”

shaped hook opening in the first direction to hook over an edge of a slot adjoining the slat engaging the first “

J”

shaped hook;

at least one wall-mounted storage cabinet having at least one mounting bracket to engage at least one slot track;

a workbench comprising a work surface and multiple legs extending from the work surface to support the work surface above a floor and defining a workbench recess beneath the work surface; and

at least one mobile storage cabinet having a top surface located at a height such that the at least one mobile storage cabinet can be received within the workbench recess with the top surface underlying the work surface and having wheels extending from the mobile storage cabinet to support the mobile storage cabinet on the floor to ease the movement of the mobile storage cabinet into and out of the workbench recess;

wherein the workroom organization system enables a user to mount workroom items on mounting brackets mounted on the plurality of slot tracks and to arrange the at least one wall-mounted storage cabinet, workbench and at least one mobile storage cabinet within the workroom in a manner most space-efficient for a particular workroom while permitting the easy relocation of the workroom items and rearrangement of the at least one wall-mounted storage cabinet, workbench, and at least one mobile storage cabinet as needed over time as the quantity and mix of workroom items changes.

38. The workroom organization system of claim 37 wherein at least two slot tracks are mounted spaced vertically on a wall and the at least one wall-mounted storage cabinet includes at least two vertically spaced mounting brackets mounted to the rear wall of the storage cabinet to engage the vertically spaced slot tracks.

39. The workroom organization system of claim 38 wherein the vertically spaced mounting brackets include a top mounting bracket attached adjacent the top of the cabinet in a fixed vertical position on the cabinet and an additional mounting bracket attached to the cabinet below the top mounting bracket in a position such that the additional mounting bracket rests on the edge of a slot track slot.

40. The workroom organization system according to claim 39, wherein the at least one mobile storage cabinet comprises one of:

a general storage cabinet comprising an open-face cabinet defining a storage recess and at least one door moveable between an opened position and a closed position for selectively closing the open face;

a drawer storage cabinet comprising an open-faced cabinet defining a storage recess and at least one drawer slidably mounted to the open-faced cabinet for movement through the open face between a stored position, where the drawer is received within the storage recess, and a use position, where at least a portion of the drawer extends beyond the open face to permit access to the drawer; and

a refrigerated cabinet having a refrigeration system for cooling the interior of the refrigerated cabinet.

41. The workroom storage system of claim 40 further comprising multiple mobile storage cabinets.

42. A workroom organization system for space-efficient, organized storage for workroom items, such as tools and supplies used in a workroom, comprising:

at least one slotwall panel mountable on a wall of the workroom having multiple slots defining a plurality of slats;

a least one slot track mountable on a wall of the workroom having two slots defining a slat;

a plurality of removable mounting brackets having a first “

J”

shaped hook on one edge opening in a first direction to hook over an edge of a slat on the at least one slotwall panel or the at least one slot track and a second “

J”

shaped hook opening in the first direction to hook over an edge of a slot adjoining the slat engaging the first “

J”

shaped hook;

at least one wall-mounted storage cabinet having at least one mounting bracket having a “

J”

shaped hook to hook over the edge of a slat on the at least one slotwall panel or the at least one slot track;

a workbench comprising a work surface and multiple legs extending from the work surface to support the work surface above a floor and defining a workbench recess beneath the work surface; and

at least one mobile storage cabinet having a top surface located at a height such that the at least one mobile storage cabinet can be received within the workbench recess with the top surface underlying the work surface and having wheels extending from the mobile storage cabinet to support the mobile storage cabinet on the floor to ease the movement of the mobile storage cabinet into and out of the workbench recess;

wherein the workroom organization system enables a user to mount workroom items on removable mounting brackets on the at least one slotwall panel or the at least one slot track and arrange the at least one wall-mounted storage cabinet, workbench and at least one mobile storage cabinet within the workroom in a manner most space-efficient for a particular workroom while permitting the easy relocation of the workroom items and rearrangement of the at least one wall-mounted storage cabinet, workbench, and at least one mobile storage cabinet as needed over time as the quantity and mix of workroom items changes.

43. The workroom organization system of claim 42 wherein a plurality of slotwall panels are mounted on at least a portion of at least one wall of the workroom and a plurality of slot tracks are mounted on a portion of at least one wall of the workroom and at least two of the slot tracks are mounted spaced vertically on a portion of a wall and the at least one wall-mounted storage cabinet includes at least two vertically spaced mounting brackets mounted to the rear wall of the storage cabinet to engage and mount the storage cabinet on the vertically spaced slot tracks or on one or more of the slotwall panels.

44. The workroom organization system of claim 42 wherein two or more slot tracks are mounted vertically spaced adjacent one or more slotwall panels such that the slots in the slot tracks align with the slots in the slotwall panel and the at least one wall-mounted storage cabinet includes at least two vertically spaced mounting brackets mounted to the rear wall of the storage cabinet to engage and mount the storage cabinet on the vertically spaced slot tracks and on one or more of the slotwall panels.

45. The workroom organization system according to claim 42, wherein the at least one mobile storage cabinet comprises one of:

a general storage cabinet comprising an open-face cabinet defining a storage recess and at least one door moveable between an opened position and a closed position for selectively closing the open face;

a drawer storage cabinet comprising an open-faced cabinet defining a storage recess and at least one drawer slidably mounted to the open-faced cabinet for movement through the open face between a stored position, where the drawer is received within the storage recess, and a use position, where at least a portion of the drawer extends beyond the open face to permit access to the drawer; and

a refrigerated cabinet having a refrigeration system for cooling the interior of the refrigerated cabinet.

46. The workroom storage system of claim 45 further comprising multiple mobile storage cabinets.