Oversize filing system

• US 5,312,177 A
• Filed: 04/28/1992
• Issued: 05/17/1994
• Est. Priority Date: 04/28/1992
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Xcel Industrial Group, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Xcel Industrial Group, Inc.
• Inventors: Coulter, J. Scott
• Primary Examiner(s): Gall, Lloyd A.
• Application Number:
  US07/875,240
• Time in Patent Office: 749 Days
• Field of Search: 312/184, 312/193, 312/348.5, 211/45, 211/46, 211/184, 211/189, 403/353, 403/381
• US Class Current: 312/184
• CPC Class Codes: A47B 88/90 Constructional details of drawers
• CPC Class Codes: A47B 88/969 Drawers having means for organising or sorting the content
• CPC Class Codes: A47B 88/975 in the form of repositionable partition walls
• CPC Class Codes: A47B 88/994 in the form of trays or inserts
• CPC Class Codes: B42F 15/0094 with access from above
• CPC Class Codes: F16B 2200/30 Dovetail-like connections

Abstract

A filing system adaptor, to be inserted into an existing file cabinet drawer having a conventional hanging file frame with a pair of parallel side rails for supporting hanging files, is disclosed. A removable base plate made of plastic is placed at the bottom of the file cabinet drawer. A number of oversized dividers made of rigid plastic are used to keep documents organized. With a height of about eleven inches, the dividers store large, bulky documents within the same filing cabinet drawer as standard letter size and legal size documents, and the dividers fit within the closed cabinet drawer by resting at an angle of about 60 degrees. A deep cutaway in the divider allows the user to quickly identify the documents maintained in the filing system. The oversized dividers are secured into place by locking tabs at the bottom edge of the divider which lock into accommodating slots in the base plate. Tabs at the top edge of the oversize divider provide support through resting on the parallel rails of the existing file frame. The base plate is adjustable to any length cabinet drawer through perforations in the base plate located at various positions along the length of the base plate. The perforations are adapted to allow a portion or portions of the base plate to be removed to adjust the size of the base plate to fit a particular file cabinet drawer.

Claims

1. A removable filing system adaptor for accommodating oversized documents, and adapted to be inserted into a filing cabinet drawer within a filing cabinet, said drawer having a given overall drawer height and said filing cabinet defining a clearance orifice for receiving said drawer, said clearance orifice having a clearance height greater than said drawer height, said filing cabinet drawer having a pair of parallel hanging file side rails for supporting hanging files and having a generally horizontally oriented drawer bottom, said filing system adaptor, comprising:

(a) a base member configured and dimensioned to lie on said drawer bottom and a plurality of slots disposed in a row, said slots being defined by said base member and disposed in alignment with each other said slots being configured, dimensioned and positioned to engage a respective slot-engageable locating means; and

(b) a plurality of generally oversized divider members, dimensioned to be greater in height than said drawer height to support in a non-vertical position documents substantially taller than a standard sized document in a conventional, standard letter size or legal size filing cabinet drawer when said divider members are oriented at a non-vertical position, said divider members each having a top edge and a bottom edge, a pair of tabs extending laterally from each of said divider members to rest on said parallel side rails, and each of said divider members having said slot-engageable locating means depending from said bottom edge to engage its respective divider member on said base member while each of said divider members rest in an upright position or in an inclined position, each said slot-engageable locating means being adapted to engage its respective one of said slots.

2. A filing system adaptor according to claim 1 wherein said tabs project in opposite outward directions and are disposed adjacent to opposite ends of said top edge of its respective divider member, said tabs being configured and dimensioned to support said divider, members at an inclined position ranging between 53 and 63 degrees from the horizontal, in both a backward and forward orientation from a perpendicular relationship to said base member, said tabs resting upon said parallel side rails.

3. A filing system adaptor according to claim 2 wherein said slots comprise a top portion and a bottom portion, with each of said slots having a greater width dimension at said bottom portion of said slot than at said top portion of said slot, providing a means to secure each of said divider members into said base member, and adapted to permit pivotal movement of each of said divider members between said perpendicular relationship and said inclined position.

4. A filing system adaptor according to claim 1 wherein said slot-engageable locating means comprises a pair of locating extensions on each of said divider members and each of said locating extensions has an enlarged bottom portion, with a greater width dimension than a smaller upper portion of each of said locating extensions, being adapted to be inserted into said slots in said base member, allowing for the plane of each of said divider members to be positioned angularly, at an angle ranging from 53 to 63 degrees from the horizontal, in both a backward and forward orientation from a perpendicular relationship to said base member, while securing each of said divider members in said base member.

5. A filing system adaptor as in claim 1, wherein said base member is made of flexible plastic.

6. A filing system adaptor as in claim 1, wherein each said slot-engageable locating means comprising a pair of die cut lower tabs which matingly lock into said slots.

7. A filing system adaptor according to claim 1 further comprising a second row of slots, said slots in said second row being aligned with the slots in the other row, and wherein said slots are positioned an a raised portion of said base member.

8. A filing system adaptor according to claim 7 wherein pairs of slot-engageable locating means have a bottom portion with dimensions mating to the dimensions of said slots, adapted to be inserted into said slots in said base member, and allowing the planes of said divider members to be positioned angularly forward and backward from the perpendicular plane of said base member, while securing said divider members in said base member.

9. A filing system adaptor according to claim 1, wherein said base member has a plurality of breakaway perforations extending through and across said base member, said perforations being positioned at various selected distances lengthwise along said base member, wherein said perforations are adapted to allow a portion or portions of said base member to be separated and removed from the remaining portion of said base member to adjust the size of the base member to fit a particular filing cabinet drawer.

10. A filing system comprising a conventional standard letter size or legal size filing cabinet drawer having a pair of hanging filing frame support rails configured and dimensioned to support a plurality of conventional, standard size hanging files depending therefrom, in combination with an adaptor to accommodate oversized documents according to claim 1.

11. A removable, adjustable filing system adaptor dimensioned for accommodation of oversized documents, said oversized documents being larger than standard sized documents, said filing system adaptor adapted to be inserted into a standard size filing cabinet drawer within a filing cabinet, said filing cabinet drawer comprising a pair of parallel side rails for supporting hanging files and having a generally horizontally oriented drawer bottom, said filing system adaptor comprising:

(a) a base member configured and dimensioned to lie on said drawer bottom, said base member having a top face at least a portion of which is raised above said drawer bottom;

(b) a pair of substantially parallel rows of slots formed in said portion of said base member, disposed in alignment with each other and spaced laterally within said filing cabinet drawer in relation to each other; and

(c) a plurality of generally oversized divider members each having a top edge and a bottom edge, a pair of tabs extending laterally from each of said divider members to rest on said parallel side rails at a position where said divider members are oriented at a non-vertical angle with respect to said base member, and said divider members each having a pair of slot-engageable locating means depending from said bottom edge to support said divider members on said base member, each said pair of slot-engageable locating means being adapted to engage in said slots and to cooperate therewith to permit pivotal movement of said divider members between an upright position and an inclined position in which said tabs engage said side rails to provide support; and

wherein said divider member and said oversized documents each have a vertical height that is greater than the total vertical height of said filing cabinet drawer, requiring said divider members to lie in an inclined position to receive and support said oversized documents within said filing cabinet drawer when said drawer is closed, and said oversized documents having, in an upright position, a height greater than the clearance for said filing cabinet drawer defined by said filing cabinet.

12. A filing system adaptor as in claim 11, wherein each of said oversized divider members have a deep cutout opening to permit a user to identify said oversized documents inserted into said filing system adaptor and to grip said oversized documents inserted into said filing system adaptor.

13. A removable, adjustable filing system adaptor to accommodate oversized documents, in combination with a filing cabinet drawer within a filing cabinet, said filing cabinet drawer having a generally horizontally oriented drawer bottom, said filing system adaptor comprising:

(a) a removable base member configured and dimensioned to lie on said drawer bottom, said base member having a top face raised above said drawer bottom;

(b) a pair of substantially parallel rows of slots, formed in said base member, disposed in alignment with each other and spaced laterally within said filing cabinet drawer in relation to each other; and

(c) a plurality of generally oversized divider members and a plurality of oversized documents, each of said oversized divider members having a top edge and a bottom edge and having a pair of slot-engageable locating means depending from said bottom edge to support each of said divider members on said base member, each said pair of slot-engageable locating means being adapted to engage in said slots and to cooperate therewith to permit pivotal movement of each of said divider members between an upright position and an inclined position, said inclined position ranging between 53 and 63 degrees from the horizontal, in either a backward or forward orientation from a perpendicular relationship to said base member, while securing each of said divider members in said base member, and each of said divider members having a deep cutout opening into said top edge to permit identification of said oversized documents and gripping of said oversized documents filed between said divider members; and

wherein said divider members each have a vertical height that is greater than the total vertical height of said filing cabinet drawer, requiring said divider members to lie in an inclined position to receive and support said oversized documents within said filing cabinet drawer when said drawer is closed, and said oversized documents having, in an upright position, a height greater than the clearance for said filing cabinet drawer defined by said filing cabinet.