Cabinet frame and door for use with quickly attachable and detachable hinges

APPLICATION

This application is a division of my copending application entitled Quickly Attachable and Detachable Hinge Assembly, filed June 6, 1968, Ser. No. 735,127.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to a cabinet which includes a door member swingable between positions opening and closing an access opening formed in a frame member. More particularly, the invention relates to a cabinet in which the door is hung pivotally on the frame by hinges of the general type disclosed in the above mentioned application. Such hinges are adapted to be clamped to and unclamped from the door and the frame in an extremely quick and easy manner to enable fast installation of the hinges on the frame, to enable fast attachment of the door to the hinges, and to enable easy replacement of the door with another of a different style or color.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The object of the present invention is to provide a cabinet having novel frame and door members which are particularly suitable for use in conjunction with quickly attachable and detachable hinges similar to those disclosed in the aforementioned application. In a more detailed sense, the invention resides in the provision of uniquely designed slots in the door and the frame to receive the parts of the hinges and to enable quick and easy clamping of the hinges to the door and frame, the slots being capable of being formed in a comparatively simple and inexpensive manner.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS^-

FIG. 1 is a fragmentary perspective view of a cabinet having new and improved door and frame members embodying the novel features of the present invention, the door being shown in a closed position.

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary perspective view similar to FIG. 1 but showing the door detached from the frame.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing one hinge and parts of the frame and the door just before the door is attached to the hinge.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary cross-section taken substantially along the line 4—4 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged perspective view of part of the door.

_g FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a part shown in FIG. 4.

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary cross-section taken substantially along the line 7—7 of FIG. 4.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing the hinge and part of the frame just before the hinge is attached to the frame. 10 FIG. 9 is a fragmentary cross-section taken substantially along the line 9—9 of FIG. 4.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

As shown in the drawings for purposes of illustration, the invention is embodied in a cabinet having a door member 10 hinged to a frame member 11 and swingable between open and closed positions with respect to a rectangular access opening 13 (FIG. 2) defined by the frame member. The door 10 in this instance is made of wood and is mounted swingably on the cabinet frame 11, which also is made of wood, by a pair of hinges 14 attached in vertically spaced relation to one edge portion of the door and the adjacent edge portion of the frame. The edge portion of the door is defined in part by a front face surface 15 (FIGS. 3 and 4), a parallel rear face surface 16 and a generally perpendicular edge surface 17 while the edge portion of the frame is defined by a forward face surface 19 (FIGS. 4 and 8), a parallel rear face surface 20 and a generally perpendicular edge surface 21. As used herein and in the appended claims, the terms “generally perpendicular” are intended to encompass two surfaces which are mutually angulated in the sense of being approximately perpendicular and are not meant to be limited to two surfaces disposed at exact right angles to one another.

Herein, the door 10 is of the type commonly referred to as an overlay door and is mounted with its rear face surface 16 opposing the forward face surface 19 of the frame 11. In the closed position of the door, the edge surfaces 17 and 21 of the door and the frame lie in generally parallel planes extending generally perpendicular to the plane of the opening 13.

Each hinge 14 is adapted for quick and easy clamping to the door 10 and the frame 11 and is identical to the fully detachable hinge disclosed in my above-identified copending application to which reference may be had for a more detailed description of the construction and advantages of the hinge itself. In brief, the hinge includes a door mounting wing 23 (FIGS. 3, 4 and 7) stamped from sheet metal and positioned along the rear face surface 16 of the door. A disc-like retainer 24 parallels the mounting wing and is fastened to the latter by a bolt 25 extending through a hole 26 in the mounting wing and threaded into a hole 27 formed in the retainer. Formed integrally with and bent outwardly from the door mounting wing 23 is a flange 29 (FIG. 4) extending along the edge surface 17 of the door and formed along its free edge with a curled knuckle 30 which is spaced outwardly from the forward face surface 19 of the frame.

As shown most clearly in FIGS. 4 and 8, the hinge 14 further includes a sheet metal frame mounting wing 31 positioned along the edge surface 21 of the frame 11 and extending parallel to a second disc-like retainer 33 formed with a projecting boss 34. A bolt 35 extends through a hole 36 (FIG. 8) in the frame wing 31 and is threaded into a hole 37 in the boss to connect the frame wing and the retainer 33. Integral with the frame wing 31 are two bent flanges 39 and 40, the former extending along the forward face surface 19 of the frame and the latter projecting outwardly from the face surface. At its free edge

3,545,134 portion, the flange 40 is formed with two vertically spaced upper and lower curled knuckles 41 (FIGS. 3 and 8) which interfit with the knuckle 30 on the door wing flange 29 and receive a cylindrical hinge pin 43 serving to connect the door wing 23 and the door 10 for swinging relative to the frame wing 31 and the frame 11. The hinge pin is staked at its ends and is retained permanently within the knuckles so that the frame and door wings can not be separated from one another.

As thus described, the hinge 14 is adapted for anchoring to the frame 11 by tightening the bolt 35 slightly to draw the retainer 33 toward the frame wing 31 so as to clamp the frame between the retainer and the wing. Similarly, the hinge may be anchored to the door 10 by giving the bolt 25 a slight turn in a tightening direction to clamp the door between the door wing 23 and the retainer 24, the latter being drawn toward the door wing as an incident to tightening the bolt.

In accordance with the present invention, quick and easy mounting of the hinge 14 to the door and frame members 10 and 11 prior to clamping of the hinge to the members is facilitated by forming the members with slots which receive the retainers 24 and 33 and the bolts 25 and 35 and which are designed in a unique manner to permit attachment of the hinge to the members with a simple slip-in motion and without need of ever separating the bolts from the retainers and the associated wings 23 and 31 to effect such attachment. After the bolts and retainers have been slipped into the slots, the bolts need only be turned slightly to clamp the hinge to the members and, as a result, there is no need of first installing the wings and the retainers on the members and then connecting the wings to the retainers with the bolts. In addition, the retainers are concealed within the slots thereby reducing the number of parts of the hinge that are visible and enhancing the appearance of the cabinet. The slots are capable of being formed quickly and easily and in a comparatively inexpensive manner.

More particularly and as shown most clearly in FIGS. 8 and 9, a retainer slot 45 for receiving the retainer 33 is formed through the frame 11 and opens out of both the forward face surface 19 and the near face surface 20. The slot 45 corresponds approximately in shape to the retainer 33 and is defined by upper and lower end walls 46 and by closely spaced opposing side walls 47 and 48 which extend parallel to the edge surface 21 of the frame. Communicating with the retainer slot 45 and formed in the edge surface 21 of the frame is a bolt slot 50 for receiving the bolt 35. The bolt slot 50 extends through the side wall 48 of the retainer slot 45, includes open ends opening out of both the forward and rear face surfaces 19 and 20 of the frame, and is defined by upper and lower edges 51 (FIG. 8) extending in the same direction as the end walls 46 but spaced vertically from one another by a distance which is considerably less than the vertical spacing between the end walls. The slots 45 and 50 may be cut into the frame simultaneously with a simple routing operation and by employing an inexpensive routing tool. As a result of the slots extending entirely through the frame member, the routing tool can be passed rapidly through the frame member and need not be stopped at any particular depth.

Because of the slots 45 and 50 formed in the frame 11, the hinge 14 may be attached to the frame while the retainer 33 is held fastened to the frame wing 31 by the bolt 35 and without need of unfastening the bolt and the retainer from the wing. In attaching the hinge to the frame, the hinge is simply moved rearwardly and bodily toward the front face surface 19 of the frame to insert the retainer 33 edgewise into the retainer slot 45 from the forward open end thereof and to position the frame' mounting wing 31 alongside the edge surface 21. As the retainer 33 is slipped into the retainer slot 45, the bolt 35 and the boss 34 move into the forward open end of the bolt slot 50 and assume in the bolt slot the positions shown in FIGS. 4 and 9. Thereafter, the hinge may be anchored rigidly to the frame simply by tightening the bolt 35 slightly to draw the retainer 33 tightly against the side wall 48 and to clamp the frame wing 31 to the edge surface 21. Accordingly, there is no need for the installer of the hinge to insert the bolt 35 into the hole 36 in the frame wing -31 and then to thread the retainer 33 onto the bolt. By loosening the bolt through a slight turn, the hinge may be quickly and easily detached from the frame. In the installed position of the hinge, the boss 34, being located in the bolt slot 50, helps fill up the latter to improve the appearance of the frame when the door 10 is open. Also, the boss engages the edges 51 of the bolt slot 50 to prevent turning of the retainer 33 when the bolt 35 is tightened or loosened.

Routed slots cut simultaneously by a routing tool also are formed in the door 10 for receiving the retainer 24 and the bolt 25 to enable attachment of the hinge 14 to the door in a manner similar to that by which the hinge is attached to the frame 11. As shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, a retainer slot 55 of generally rectangular cross-section for receiving the retainer 24 is formed in the door and opens out of the edge surface 17 of the door. The retainer slot 55 is defined by a closed wall 56 (FIG. 4), upper and lower straight and continuous end walls 57 (FIG. 7) and by closely spaced opposing side walls 59 and 60 which extend parallel to the face surfaces 15 and 16 of the door. The routing tool forms the end wall 56 with a curved configuration, as shown in FIG. 5, and the wall 56 curves continuously around from the upper wall 57 to the lower wall 57. Formed in the rear face surface 16 of the door for receiving the bolt 25 is an elongated bolt slot 61 extending through part of the side wall 60 into communication with the retainer slot 55 and defined in part by upper and lower edges 63 (FIG. 5) and by an open end which opens out of the edge surface 17 of the door. Disposed opposite the open end of the slot 61 is a closed end wall 62 (FIG. 5) which curves continuously around from the upper edge 63 to the lower edge 63. The curved wall 62 is concentric with the curved wall 56, is formed on a smaller radius than the wall 56, and is disposed nearer to the edge surface 17. The edges 63 extend in the same direction as the end walls 57 of the retainer slot 55 but are spaced apart a distance less than the spacing between the end walls. Also, it will be noted that neither the retainer slot 55 nor the bolt slot 61 extends completely through the door and thus the continuity and attractiveness of the forward face surface 15 of the door is preserved.

With the foregoing arrangement, attachment of the door 10 to the hinge 14 on the frame 11 may be effected while the retainer 24 is held fastened to the door mounting wing 23 by the bolt 25 as shown in FIG. 3. To attach the door, the latter simply is moved edgewise toward the hinge to position the door mounting wing 23 alongside the rear face surface 16 of the door and to cause insertion of the retainer 24 into the retainer slot 55 through the open end thereof. As an incident to insertion of the retainer 24 into the retainer slot 55, the bolt 25, in effect, passes into the open end of the elongated bolt slot 61 and assumes a position spaced from the open end as shown in FIG. 4. Thereafter, the bolt 25 is simply given a slight turn in a tightening direction to clamp the door mounting wing 23 firmly to the rear face surface 16 of the door and to draw the retainer 24 into tight engagement with the side wall 60 of the retainer slot 55 thereby to clamp the door between the wing and the retainer and to attach the door securely to the hinge. Turning of the retainer 24 during tightening of the bolt 25 is prevented by engagement of the retainer with the end walls 57 of the retainer slot 55. If it is desired to remove the door, it is necessary only to loosen the bolt 25 slightly to unclamp the mounting wing 23 and the retainer 24 from

8,545,134 the door. The door then may be moved edgewise away from the hinge with the latter remaining attached to the frame 11.

It thus will be apparent that the provision of the slots 45, 50 and 55, 61 in the frame 11 and door 10, respectively, permits installation of the hinge 14 on the frame with a simple slip-in motion and enables the door to be attached simply by slipping the door onto the hinge. Since the slots eliminate the need of ever removing the bolts 25 and 35 from the wings 23 and 31 and the retainers 24 and 33, the bolts and the retainers may be assembled to the wings by the hinge manufacturer and thus the hinge installer is not required to insert the bolts through the wings and then thread the retainers onto the bolts. Also, the hinge manufacturer may permanently captivate the bolts to the wings and permanently captivate the retainers to the bolts to enable packaging, shipment and marketing of the entire hinge as a unitary assembly or self-contained unit. For this purpose, an enlarged annular captivating collar 65 (FIG. 4) is formed around the shank of each bolt adjacent the head thereof to prevent withdrawal of the bolt from the hole in the respective mounting wing while still permitting turning the bolt. Also, the metal at the end of each bolt is deformed or spread outwardly as indicated at 66 in FIG. 4 thereby to prevent the bolt from backing out of the hole in the associated retainer. Thus, the mounting wings, the bolts and the retainers are prevented from becoming separated from one another, and the hinge may be sold as a unitary assembly with no loose fasteners being required to effec attachment of the hinge to the door and the frame.

To advantage, the slots 55 and 61 in the door are sized to permit adjustment of the door 10 through wide ranges, both vertically and laterally, relative to the hinge 14 to permit fast and easy alinement of the door into a correct position with respect to the cabinet opening 13 in case the cabinet frame 11 is “racked” or out of square. To these ends, the retainer slot 55 and the bolt slot 61 are made slightly larger than the retainer 24 and the bolt 25, respectively, to allow limited floating of the retainer and the bolt within the slots to the positions necessary to permit proper alinement of the door. Once the door has been alined and the bolt 25 tightened, the retainer 24 and the mounting wing 23 are clamped rigidly to the door to hold the latter in its adjusted position.

More specifically and as shown in FIG. 7, the spacing between the end walls 57 of the retainer slot 55 in the door 10 is approximately Vs greater than the spacing between the corresponding edges of the retainer 24 and, in addition, the spacing between the edges 63 of the elongated bolt slot 61 is at least Vs greater than the diameter of the bolt 25. As a result, before the bolt is tightened, the door may be shifted vertically relative to the bolt and the retainer to enable accurate positioning of the upper and lower edges of the door relative to the corresponding edges of the cabinet opening 13. Moreover, the depth of the retainer slot 55 (i.e., the horizontal distance between the closed wall 56 and the open end of the slot) is approximately greater than the horizontal dimension of the retainer 24 and this, in conjunction with the elongated open-ended slot 61 for receiving the bolt 25, enables location of the door in various lateral positions with respect to the hinge 14 while still permitting clamping of the door to the hinge. With the door being laterally and vertically adjustable on the hinge, the door can be fitted properly to die frame 11 even though the frame is in a racked condition. Preferably, the slots 45 and 50 in the frame also are made somewhat larger than the retainer 33 and the boss 34, respectively, to allow limited floating of the retainer 33 for purposes of affording an even wider range of adjustment. With the slots enlarged, the location of the routing is not extremely critical and can be off as much as %e without causing improper mounting of the door on the hinge.

It should be noted that the provision of the slots 45, 50 and 55, 61 eliminate the need of gang drilling the frame 11 and the door 10 to receive threaded wood screws. Also, the retainer 24 is concealed in the slot 55 in the door and does not detract from the appearance of the cabinet.

Because of the ease and rapidity with which the slots 45, 50 and 55, 61 permit attachment and detachment of the hinge 14, the hinge need not be attached to the door 10 or the frame 11 at the cabinet manufacturing plant but, instead, can be attached easily by a distributor, a dealer, an installer or even the ultimate user. As a result, the doors and frames may be shipped separately and without any attached hinge hardware thus resulting in less damage in transit to the doors and the frames. Moreover, since the slots facilitate easy attachment and detachment of the hinge, it is feasible for a distributor or dealer to stock a basic line of cabinet frames and to apply doors with a style and color of the customer’s choosing thus reducing the amount of cabinet inventory required to carry a full line of cabinet designs. The hinge may be attached and detached any number of times without any possibility of the door and frame material being stripped by threaded wood screws since the bolts 25 and 35, instead of being screwed into the wood, are threaded into the retainers 24 and 33 concealed within the slots 55 and 45. Each pair of slots may be formed in a simple manner and with a single pass of a suitable routing tool.