Locking wall accessory fastener

• US 5,308,031 A
• Filed: 03/25/1992
• Issued: 05/03/1994
• Est. Priority Date: 10/16/1990
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Rubbermaid Office Products Group, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Eldon Industries Incorporated (Newell Brands Inc.)
• Inventors: Evenson, Mel
• Primary Examiner(s): Talbott, David L.
• Application Number:
  US07/859,283
• Time in Patent Office: 769 Days
• Field of Search: 248/222.1, 248/243, 248/222.2, 248/247, 248/225.2, 211/191, 211/192, 211/193
• US Class Current: 248/222.13
• CPC Class Codes: E04B 2/7416 with free upper edge, e.g. for use as office space dividers
• CPC Class Codes: E04B 2002/7483 Details of furniture, e.g. tables or shelves, associated with the partitions

Abstract

A locking accessory bracket for use with an accessory standard. A locking accessory bracket that may be used with an accessory standard that essentially comprises a flat, straight elongated body portion having a multiplicity of identical, spatially positioned, upwardly projecting, L-shaped hook members located on either side thereof. The locking accessory bracket comprises a flat mounting plate and a hook plate made integral therewith. The hook plate has a plurality of identical, spatially positioned, downwardly projecting, L-shaped hook members, for detachable engagement with desired ones of the multiplicity of upwardly projecting hook members of the accessory standard. The improvement comprises a locking member that is rotatably mounted at a topmost portion of the hook plate. When downwardly projecting hook members of the hook plate are detachably engaged with corresponding ones of the multiplicity of upwardly projecting hook members of the accessory standard, the locking member abuts a bottom portion of an upwardly projecting hook member immediately adjacent to a topmost downwardly projecting hook member of the hook plate. Thus, the position of the locking member substantially inhibits removal of the mounting plate from the accessory standard.

Claims

1. An improved bracket for securing a desired accessory to an upright accessory standard, said standard being located in a space between opposed ends of a pair of modular wall panels and having a substantially flat elongated body portion and having a multiplicity of identical, spatially positioned upwardly-projected L-shaped hook-receiving members located on either side thereof and defining a plurality of apertures therebetween, wherein the apparatus comprises:

a flat mounting plate having a top and a bottom;

a flat hook plate made integral with the mounting plate, said hook plate being disposed at a substantially right angle to the mounting plate and having a plurality of identical spatially positioned downwardly projecting L-shaped hook members for detachable engagement with one or more upwardly-projecting L-shaped hook-receiving members of said accessory standard;

a flat locking member comprised of a substantially rectangular body portion having a proximate end and a distal end, the proximate end of the rectangular body portion being rotatably mounted at a topmost portion on a single side of said hook plate in close proximity to a topmost hook member thereof, the distal end being substantially straight;

a protrusion integrally formed with a portion of the distal end of the rectangular body portion, an inner edge of said protrusion and a portion of the distal end of the rectangular body portion forming an abutting surface;

said locking member having a width which is not substantially wider than a width of said hook plate such that both may fit into an aperture between a pair of hook-receiving members in the space between the opposed pair of modular walls;

said substantially rectangular body portion having a length defined between said proximate end and said distal end which is sized whereby, when the downwardly projecting hook members of said hook plate are detachably engaged with upwardly-projecting L-shaped hook-receiving members of said accessory standard, said abutting surface may be pivoted toward and into an aperture in which a topmost hook member is engaged and abut along both bottom and outer portions of an L-shaped hook-receiving member immediately above said aperture to inhibit removal of said mounting plate from said accessory standard.

2. The improved bracket of claim 1 further comprising a fastening means for rotatably mounting said locking member to said hook plate.

3. The improved bracket of claim 2 wherein said fastening means comprises a rivet.

4. The improved bracket of claim 1 wherein said mounting plate, said hook plate, and said locking member are comprised of a metal alloy.

5. A bracket for securing an accessory to a standard having a plurality of upwardly-projecting hook-receiving members that are located in a space between opposed ends of a pair of modular walls, said bracket comprising:

a flat mounting plate;

a flat hook plate made integral with the mounting plate and having at least one L-shaped hook member extending from a topmost portion of the hook plate, said L-shaped hook member detachably engaging an aperture formed between two of said hook-receiving members of said standard;

a flat locking member having a substantially rectangular body portion with a proximate end and a distal end, the proximate end of the rectangular body portion being rotatably attached to the topmost portion on a single side of said hook plate and in close proximity to said L-shaped hook member extending therefrom;

a protrusion integrally formed with a portion of the distal end of the rectangular body portion, an inner edge of said protrusion and a portion of said distal end of the rectangular body portion forming an abutting surface;

said locking member having a width which is not substantially wider than a width of said hook plate such that both may fit into an aperture between a pair of hook-receiving members in the space between the opposed pair of modular walls;

said substantially rectangular body portion having a length defined between said proximate end and said distal end which is sized whereby, when said L-shaped hook member is engaged with a particular aperture, said abutting surface may be rotated into said aperture against an L-shaped hook-receiving member immediately above said aperture, to inhibit inadvertent disengagement of said L-shaped hook member from said particular aperture.

6. The bracket of claim 5 wherein the hook plate extends from said mounting plate at substantially a right angle.

7. An improved bracket for mounting to an upright accessory standard, said standard having a plurality of identical upwardly-projecting hook-receiving members that define a plurality of apertures therebetween and that are located in a space between opposed ends of a pair of modular walls, wherein the apparatus comprises:

a flat hook plate having at least one downwardly-projecting hook member for detachable engagement with a first upwardly-projecting hook-receiving member of the accessory standard; and

a flat locking member having a proximate end and a distal end, the proximate end being rotatably mounted near a topmost portion on a single side of said hook plate, said distal end having an abutting surface complementarily shaped with lower, outer edges of hook-receiving members of said accessory standard;

said locking member having a width which is not substantially wider than a width of said hook plate such that both may fit into an aperture between a pair of hook-receiving members in the space between the opposed pair of modular walls;

said locking member being sized and positioned whereby, when the downwardly-projecting hook member of the hook plate is detachably engaged with a first upwardly-projecting hook-receiving member of the accessory standard, the abutting surface of the locking member fits within the space between the modular walls and abuts the lower outer edge of a second upwardly-projecting hook-receiving member positioned immediately above said first hook-receiving member.

8. The improved bracket of claim 7, wherein the lower, outer edge of the upwardly-projecting hook-receiving members of the accessory are generally curved and the abutting surface of the locking member is generally curved.