WO2010058146A1

WO2010058146A1 - Storage and display unit

Info

Publication number: WO2010058146A1
Application number: PCT/GB2008/003876
Authority: WO
Inventors: Reza Aini
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2008-11-18
Filing date: 2008-11-18
Publication date: 2010-05-27
Anticipated expiration: 2011-05-18

Abstract

A vertical carousel unit (1) comprises a drive system arranged to drive a plurality of spaced containers (2) in a path around an upwardly extending loop. The arrangement is such that each container maintains its orientation with respect to its direction of travel whilst moving around the loop. Each container is provided with an opening which faces upwardly when the container is at the top of the loop, and a closure (7) that can be opened to gain access to the interior of the container through the opening when the container is at a suitable point on its path for access to be made to the interior of the container.

Description

Storage and Display Unit

The present invention relates to a unit for the display and / or storage of articles. The invention is particularly, but not exclusively, concerned with the storage of articles that might be found in a household, and for example clothing-accessories such as shoes.

Household storage space for accessory articles is frequently found to be insufficient, untidy and inaccessible at times in present homes and apartments. With limited amounts of space available in closets, cupboard and suchlike for accessory articles such as shoes, it is common practice to box and store the surplus items away in places that are usually out of sight and reach for everyday use. Out of sight and consequently out of mind items get excluded from the everyday selection process, so that such articles become obsolete and economically wasteful.

There have been various proposals for improving the efficiency of storage in industrial and commercial contexts. One proposal is a vertical carousel, in which a plurality of racks or containers move around a loop extending in a vertical frame. The arrangement is such that the racks or containers retain the same orientation relative to the vertical direction, as they pass around the loop, i.e. their orientation changes with respect to a drive member to which the containers are attached. This type of arrangement corresponds to that used in a paternoster elevator. Access to the racks or containers is from a front face of the carousel, the top, bottom and rear portions normally being concealed.

Such arrangements are generally bulky and unsuitable for domestic use.

Viewed from one aspect, the invention provides a vertical carousel unit comprising a drive system arranged to drive a plurality of spaced containers in a path around an upwardly extending loop, wherein the arrangement is such that each container maintains its orientation with respect to its direction of travel whilst moving around the loop, and each container is provided with an opening which faces upwardly when the container is at the top of the loop, and a closure that can be opened to gain access to the interior of the container through the opening when the container is at a suitable point on its path for access to be made to the interior of the container.

Thus, the container's orientation to vertical will vary as the container moves around the path. As a result, the opening which faces upwardly at the top of the path, will point downwardly at the bottom of the path, and sideways during the upwards and downwards parts of the path. Such an arrangement provides a more compact unit that can be achieved with conventional vertical carousels. In particular, the apparatus only needs to be able to accommodate the dimensions of one container at the top and bottom of the carousel, rather than the two containers side by side in the intermediate regions, as would be required if using a paternoster type of arrangement. The closure means ensures that articles are retained within the containers, for example when a container is at the bottom of its path and the opening is facing downwardly.

The arrangement may be such that the containers can move around the path in one sense only, but preferably the arrangement is such that the containers can move in both senses, i.e. clockwise and anti-clockwise.

There may be a drive element arranged to move around the loop, and the plurality of containers are attached to the drive element at spaced positions, so that movement of the drive element causes the containers to travel in a path around the loop. In that case, each container will maintain its orientation with respect to the drive element whilst moving around the loop. The drive element could be moved manually, for example by moving a container attached to the drive element, or mechanically such as by an electric motor.

Preferably, the arrangement is that access to the interior of a container can be achieved when the container is at the top of its path, the closure covering an opening facing upwardly at that point. However, the arrangement could be such that - additionally or alternatively - access to the interior of a container is achieved when it is on an upwardly or downwardly extending part of its path, through an opening which at that point faces upwardly or even laterally. In one embodiment, the arrangement is such that a container can be accessed laterally, when in the upwards / downwards part of the path, as if it was a bookcase, display cabinet or the like. Additionally or alternatively it can be accessed in the downwards direction when at the top of its path, as if it was a chest or the like.

In some embodiments, the container is in the form of a cradle. Typically the container may be generally rectangular, and preferably oblong with two sides elongate compared to the other two sides. In some embodiments, when a container is at the top of the loop with the opening facing upwards, it will have a rectangular base, front and back sides - and shorter left and right sides. The height of the sides defines the "depth" of the container. Preferably this is not substantially greater than one half of the front to back dimension of the container. As a result, the apparatus can be maintained compact. If, for example, the depth of container is one half the front to back dimension, the front to back dimension of the apparatus need not exceed that of the container. The containers on the upward and downward part of the path will each present a front to back dimension, relative to the apparatus, of one half.

It is advantageous if there is an interlock such that a container cannot be moved unless the closure means is closed, this being to ensure that a user cannot accdientally move the containers when one is open, such that its contents would fall out when it is inverted at the bottom of the path, or even when moving along a vertical part of the path. The interlock means could be such that it only operates when a container is in a position such that its contents can be accessed, although arrangements would be possible which prevent movement of the containers even if a closure means is open on a container at another point in its path. Additionally or alternatively, the arrangement is such that there is an interlock so that a closure cannot be opened unless the container is in an appropriate position.

The invention may be viewed from many alternative aspects. For example, viewed from one aspect, the invention provides a vertical carousel unit comprising a drive element arranged to move around a loop which lies in a vertical plane, and a plurality of containers attached to the drive element at spaced positions, so that movement of the drive element causes the containers to travel in a path around the loop, wherein the arrangement is such that access to the interior of a container is achieved when that container is at the top of its path, at which point the container has an upwardly facing opening.

Preferably, each container is provided with closure means that can be opened to gain access to the interior of the container.

Preferably, the arrangement is such that each container retains is orientation with respect to the drive element throughout is path. Thus, the container's orientation to vertical will vary as the container moves around the path. As a result, the opening which faces upwardly at the top of the path, will point downwardly at the bottom of the path, and sideways during the vertical parts of the path. Such an arrangement provides a more compact unit that can be achieved with conventional vertical carousels. With such an arrangement, it is desirable that there be means for retaining articles within the containers, such as closure means that can be opened when the container is at a suitable position to gain access to the interior of the container.

Such an arrangement is of use even if access to a container is in a lateral direction rather than from the top. Thus, viewed from another aspect, the invention provides a vertical carousel unit comprising a drive element arranged to move around a loop which lies in a vertical plane, and a plurality of containers attached to the drive element at spaced positions, so that movement of the drive element causes the containers to travel in a path around the loop, wherein the arrangement is such that each container maintains its orientation with respect to the drive element whilst moving around the path, and each container is provided with closure means that can be opened to gain access to the interior of the container when that container is at a suitable point on its path for access to be made to the interior of the container.

In some cases, such an interlock arrangement could be of use even if the containers maintain their orientation with respect to the vertical.

Viewed from another aspect, the present invention provides a vertical carousel unit comprising a drive element arranged to move around a loop which lies in a vertical plane, and a plurality of containers attached to the drive element at spaced positions, so that movement of the drive element causes the containers to travel in a path around the loop, wherein each container is provided with closure means that can be opened to gain access to the interior of the container when that container is at a suitable point on its path for access to be made to the interior of the container, and an interlock arrangement is provided so that the containers cannot be moved if a closure means is in an open condition.

It will be appreciated that expressions such as "vertical" , "upwards" and so forth are not intended to have a precise geometric meaning.

An embodiment of the invention will now be described by way of example only and with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 shows a carousel in accordance with the invention;

Figure 2 is a sectional side view through the carousel;

Figure 3 shows a sliding mechanism of the carousel, comprising runner blocks and a loop track; Figure 4 shows a cradle assembly of the carousel, with runner blocks, transparent sliding doors and the cradle;

Figure 5 shows the frame infrastructure of the carousel, comprising a base plate, side panels and cross bars;

Figure 6 shows an interlock mechanism, for a sliding door at the top and a lever arm at the bottom;

Figure 7 shows how interlocking is complete whilst sliding of the access door is taking place;

Figure 8 shows an embodiment of the invention in an intermediate configuration; and

Figure 9 shows the embodiment of Figure 8 with the cradles in an alternative position

Referring now in detail to the drawings, there is shown an ergonomic, free standing storage carousel 1 with nominal floor space requirement for its installation and maximum storage capacity per space volume occupied is presented here. This aesthetically unique combined storage/display unit consists of six separate fully enclosed cradles 2 linked together to form a carousel that travels in an elliptical orbit within a pair of tracks 3 provided in side members 4, 5 at either sides of a frame structure 6, internally.

The orientation of the cradles 2 relative to the uppermost position, designated in this embodiment as the primary storage & retrieval position of the carousel, is as follows. The top cradle would be in a horizontal plane facing upwards whilst its opposite number, the bottom cradle, would be facing down in a parallel plane. The four remaining cradles are in vertical planes in a back-to-back arrangement with two cradles leading and the other two lagging the top position of the carousel, i.e. the top cradle, respectively.

Access to each cradle 2 is via an opening provided with a closure in the form of a pair of transparent doors 7 with handles 8. Since the front and rear faces of the assembly unit are covered by artefacts to provide the necessary aesthetic, all items within the top cradle would be on display and ready for inspection, further storage or retrieval. Furthermore due to the enclosed nature of the individual cradles and hence the carousel, hygiene and odour control are enforced continuously and consistently. This is of interest in the context of dirty shoes, for example.

A horizontal pull of the top cradle towards the operator would initiate the descent by forcing the top cradle to index down inline with gravity whilst simultaneously pulling the lagging cradle towards pole position. As it reaches the pole position of the carousel it changes its orientation from vertical to horizontal ready for further inspection, storage or retrieval of parts.

No strenuous physical manoeuvring such as bending or reaching is required to store or retrieve articles such as shoes from the carousel other than opening a transparent access doors at the top cradle, making this embodiment of the invention usable as one of the most ergonomic shoe racks available.

A significant feature of this embodiment of the invention is its drive mechanism. It consists of the dedicated tracks 3 machined in side members 4 and 5 on either side of the frame structure 6, as shown in Figures 3 and 5, and six runner blocks 9 linked together via a high tensile rope (not shown), equally spacing them apart. The predefined profiles of the tracks (internal and external) in part acts as a guide whilst in principle they provide the all essential motion control.

The runner blocks 9 themselves have a complex external profile that facilitates easy of sliding as well as possessing cam like features to allow them to effortlessly negotiates the bends within the tracks 3, whilst providing maximum contact surfaces at pole position 10 as shown in Figure 3. They also posses a further feature on their upper section that facilitates locking of the runner blocks at the poles positions every time they reach the summit of the carousel (see Figures 3 and 4).

A number of ball spring plungers are used at the pole positions. An integrated cam profile of the approaching runner blocks will push the ball spring plungers away until the centreline of the runner block coincides with the spring plunger. The plunger will thrust the ball out onto the slotted track of the runner block, locking it in position. Hence in the unlikely event of weight difference between the leading and the trailing cradles attached to the remaining runner blocks, no consequential movement would results.

The runner blocks are made from special polymer grade that has sufficient lubrication properties to render the track surfaces free from friction and ease transition of the blocks from one position to the next.

The cradles may be individually colour coded (i.e. Blue, Brown, Green, Red, Yellow & White), and may have two or more independent compartments, each capable of accommodating a minimum of two pairs of large men's size shoes, for example. A combination of colour coding and numbering per cradle makes recalling the location of a stored item much simpler.

An individual cradle 2 is shown in Figure 4. It is generally rectangular, or cuboid, having a base 11, front and rear walls 12 and 13, left and right walls 14 and 15, and transparent top sliding access doors 7 with handles 8 respectively.

The transparent access doors 7 to cradles 2 are fitted with simple and effective mechanisms to prevent objects falling out of the cradles during the carousel's orbits by one, or a combination, of the following approaches,

1. The doors may be self closing. In one embodiment the sliding doors are fitted to a pre-tensioned media (i.e. a bungee elastic cord or tensile springs) that is anchored to the outside walls of each cradle, pulling the sliding doors back to their closed position, every time access doors are opened. In another embodiment the transparent doors are hinged from one side and pre-tensioned from the other, allowing simultaneous lift and swing action of each door for access and automatic return to its original closed position

2. An interlocking mechanism is fitted to the side of each cradle to prevent the cradles being moved when a door is open. One possibility is shown in Figures 6 and 7. A cog wheel 16 is rotated by a portion 17 connected to a sliding door. As the door is slid open, the portion 17 moves and a second portion 18 is driven in the opposite direction by the cog wheel 16. The second portion 18 extends into a slot (not shown) on the internal side of the frame structure 6 upon sliding an access door 7 open. Protrusion of the portion 18 into the slot prevents the carousel being used if one or both of the sliding access doors are left open.

As shown in Figure 5, the frame structure 6 includes a base 19, the left and right members 4, 5, and upper tie bar 20 and lower tie bar 21 interconnecting the side members 4 and 5.

Figures 8 and 9 show an embodiment of the carousel 1 with cradles 2 and sliding doors 7.

Alternative embodiments may be designed for different shapes and sizes, as well as substitution of known materials which may be developed at a future date to perform principally the same function as the present described embodiment and are therefore considered to be part of the present invention . Various optional features , and advantages at least of the preferred embodiments, are set out as follows.

The combined storage & display carousel requires a minimum amount of floor space for its installation with the maximum storage capacity per space volume occupied. As regards interlocking and self closing access doors , the following mechanisms, for example, would prevent the carousel from functioning or items from falling out of the cradles in the event of operator failing to close the access door properly prior to indexing the carousel forward.

Sliding or Constantine foldaway doors with interlocking or self closing mechanism .

Hinged doors with self locking features (mechanical or magnetic).

Permanent elastic cord or diaphragm that would keep stored items in and would open by manually pushing them away.

The drive mechanism for the cradles and the carousel could be a sliding mechanism as discussed above, or for example a belt drive mechanism. Synchronised belts

(wide or narrow) could be coupled with a pair of sprockets driving the looped cradle assembly by fixing each cradle to the outer surfaces of the drive belts. The shaft supporting the sprockets at the top and the bottom pole positions would be fitted to the side frames via a pair of plain bearing bushings. Another possibility would be a motorised version of a belt drive mechanism. A stepper motor coupled indirectly to the aforementioned shaft would provide the necessary power to index the carousel forward or backwards by one location.

Possible uses of th (e storage unit are for the storage and display of CDs, DVDs, audio tapes, VHS video tapes, books, photo albums, and children's toys, as well as being used as a revolving display cabinet.

The preferred location for access to the carousel (particularly for e.g. the storage or retrieval of shoes) is at its pole position which is, for example, approximately 1250 mm above the ground. This height matches the internationally recognised average waist height, hence no strenuous physical manoeuvring such as bending or reaching is required to store or retrieve shoes from this location. Odour emitting from shoes whether as a result of sweat (internally) or stepping on waste matter results in polluted and spoiled atmosphere surrounding shoes. These could be contained in suitable sealed containers in embodiments of the invention, thus eliminating the need to store the rack in a secluded spot such as an external closet, cloakroom or garden shed.

Since in the preferred embodiment, the top cradle is on display at all time and the rest of the cradles are covered by dedicated artefacts, aesthetically the carousel would be disguised and can pass as e. g. living room furniture. Hence it can be stored in the most convenient location anywhere in any household.

In one practical form of construction in its current form the carousel requires 35O x 900 square millimetres to store and display 24 pairs of UK size 9 men's shoes. This requirement is predominantly dictated by the base size shoes of interest (i.e. if the requirement is for size 7 and 18 pairs, the floor space requirement drops to 300 x 750).

As regards the choice of material for the cradles, they could for example be solid wood frame with perforated plastic sheet at its base; formed aluminium or steel sheets with perforated base; or any lightweight moulded plastics or composites such as fibreglass and PVC laminated Aluminium.

The carousel design can change in dimension and size (i.e. number of cradles, height, width & depth) as well as the location of the storage/retrieval station from its current pole position to any where else within the assembly.

The preferred embodiment of the invention provides an aesthetic and ergonomic rack that is free standing, hygienic and requires least amount of floor space for its installation with maximum storage capacity per space volume occupied is an essential necessity of today's rapid life styles.

Claims

1. A vertical carousel unit comprising a drive system arranged to drive a plurality of spaced containers in a path around an upwardly extending loop, wherein the arrangement is such that each container maintains its orientation with respect to its direction of travel whilst moving around the loop, and each container is provided with an opening which faces upwardly when the container is at the top of the loop, and a closure that can be opened to gain access to the interior of the container through the opening when the container is at a suitable point on its path for access to be made to the interior of the container.

2. A carouse unit as claimed in claim 1 , wherein a drive element is arranged to move around the loop, and the plurality of containers are attached to the drive element at spaced positions, so that movement of the drive element causes the containers to travel in a path around the loop.

3. A carousel unit as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein the arrangement is such that access to the interior of a container can be achieved when the container is at the top of its path, the closure covering an opening facing upwardly at that point.

4. A carousel unit as claimed in claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the arrangement is such that access to the interior of a container is achieved when it is on an upwardly or downwardly extending part of its path, through an opening which at that point faces respectively upwardly or laterally.

5. A carousel unit as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the container is in the form of a cradle.

6. A carousel unit as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the container is generally rectangular.

7. A carousel as claimed in claim 6, wherein when a container is at the top of the loop with the opening facing upwards, it will have a rectangular base, front and back sides, and shorter left and right sides.

8. A carousel as claimed in claim 7, wherein the height of the sides is not substantially greater than one half of the front to back dimension of the container.

9. A carousel as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein there is an interlock such that a container cannot be moved unless the closure is closed.

10. A carousel as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein there is an interlock such that a closure cannot be opened unless the container is in an appropriate position.