FLAT PACK DRAWER

Description

BACKGROUND

This invention is designed to create a drawer that can be condensed into a flat space with little or no disassembly required. It can be used to overcome one of the main issues associated with flat-pack furniture, the ability to ship a drawer. Until now there hasn't been a drawer that folds flat unless it's fully disassembled.

This can be achieved by starting with a solid foundation. This can be a heavy piece of plywood or other wood products, can be a honeycomb core that has vertical grain for higher compression strength, and can add stiffener with any skin of choice, metals, plastics, or any desired flat sheet building material. The base or foundation will support the entire drawer. Conventional drawers use the side walls to support the majority of the drawer while the bottom or base is just thin plywood or other similar materials.

At least one sliding mechanism can be attached to the bottom or sides of the baseboard. The sliding mechanism can be as simple as small dimensional lumber that slides as a channel created by small dimensional lumber on the opposing side. The sliding mechanism can be standard drawer sides as commonly used. The baseboard can have a front section attached where the face of the drawer is meant to be. The front section can be made with the same materials as the base or it can be different. It can be fastened to the base with mechanical fasteners such as screws, nails, hinges, or other mechanical fasteners.

Hinges can be used to join the base and front to allow the assembly to be easily folded into a flat position which can easily be stacked and shipped without using more space than necessary. The front can fold up, creating a right angle between the front and the baseboard. They can be locked into position with a locking pin, “L” brackets, gussets supporting the angle, or hardware extending from the top corner of the front to the back corner of the baseboard. The structure of the drawer when assembled makes an “L” shape. Gussets sizes and can be staggered so that the drawer assemblies can be easily stacked without wasting space.

Hinges can be utilized to also attach the back of the drawer, similar to the front. When assembled and upright, it will create a “U” shape. Hinges between the base and the front as well as between the base and the back will allow the front and back to be folded down onto the base when needing to be stored or shipped, ensuring that the least amount of space is being occupied. Once the front and back are folded up, sides can be added. The sides can be made of wood products, plastics, metals, solid core panels, or hollow core panels. The sides can be permanently or temporarily fastened to the front, back, and/or base panels. Permanent fastening could be achieved with screws, nails, glue, dowels, or any combination of these fastening methods. Temporary fastening could be achieved with hooks, locking pins, magnets, hook and loop fasteners, double-sided tape, or any other temporary fastener.

“U” channel stock can be added to the front, back, and/or bottom of the drawer structure. This channel can be used to fit the other components of the drawer structure. For example, if the front has a “U” channel attached, the sides can slide into the channel and be fastened. Alternatively, a channel can be carved out of the drawer structure. The channel could be carved into the front sides, and/or back of the drawer structure. Other components of the drawer structure can be fitted into the carved channel and can be fastened.

The inner drawer box can be made of solid or soft material. Solid materials could be wood, metal, plastics, or wood products. Soft materials can be paper boxes, cardboard boxes, canvas boxes, fabric boxes, or any other soft material box. If the inner drawer box is made of soft material, then the inner box will not be structural, only to organize and prevent items placed in the drawer from falling. The soft inner box can be attached to the base, front, sides, and/or back of the drawer using glue, double-sided tape, hook, and loop fasteners, magnets, or other temporary fasteners. If the inner drawer box is made of solid materials, then it can but does not have to be, structural. It can be made of at least three sides to create walls, and instead of a fourth wall, it can be fastened to the front and the base of the drawer with permanent or temporary fasteners. This will ensure a secure and stable drawer. With the inner drawer box permanently fastened to the drawer front and base, the inner box will maintain the drawer front and base at a right angle. The inner box can be assembled or can be flat-packed. The inner boxes can nest together or can be staggered to fit side by side while in shipment or storage.

The drawer front can be formed as one piece to save labor costs. This could be thermoformed plastic, acrylic, or formed aluminum that will create a single-piece drawer with the base and front. This can also result in a drawer base and front that is extremely lightweight and strong.

Optional provisions have been made to include a drawer that would be flipped around so that the drawer base is on the top of the drawer. The base in this sense can have an opening that a basket or bin can fit inside and fold down. The base will still be the main structure of the drawer, but it will eliminate the need for an inner box as it will be replaced with a bin or basket. The sides of the drawer base can have a sliding mechanism like conventional drawer slides, or it can be a simple slot made of small dimensional lumber. The base can be joined to the top of the drawer front to hide the hanging basket or bin and to add a knob or handle for easy use. The base and drawer front can be joined permanently or temporarily. Permanent fasteners could be screws, nails, glue, dowels, or other permanent fasteners. Temporary fasteners could be locking pins, hinges, hooks, or other temporary fasteners. The drawer front and base could be joined with hinges to allow it to be folded for easy shipment and storage. Hinges could be placed to act as a stop for the drawer front to be a ninety-degree angle from the drawer base. The drawers, whether assembled or not, can be staggered to reduce the amount of waste space in shipping packaging. This may mean that each drawer assembly may be a different size, or can be arranged in a different fashion. The hinges can be 90 degrees to the base or parallel with the base. The storage box can be fastened permanently or temporarily on top of the drawer base.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an isometric view of the base of the drawer.

FIG. 2 is a front view of a dresser without the drawers, showing where the slides can be placed.

FIG. 3 is a front view of a drawer base and front joined by hinges.

FIG. 4 is a side view of a drawer base and front joined by hinges and supported by a gusset.

FIG. 5 is a side view of a drawer base with the front and back joined by hinges.

FIG. 6 is a side view of a drawer side that can be hinged on each side as well as in the center.

FIG. 7 is a top view of the walls of the drawer where both sides can collapse.

FIG. 8 is a side view of the drawer structure with the base, front, and back joined and a drawer face is installed.

FIG. 9 is an isometric view of a drawer base that is fastened at the top of the drawer assembly.

FIG. 10 is an isometric view of a drawer base that is fastened at the top of the drawer assembly with an added gusset for support.

FIG. 11 is a side view of the drawer assembly with the base on the bottom and the front extending past the edge.

FIG. 12 is a side view of the drawer assembly with the base on the top and the front extends past the edge.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION AND BEST MODE OF IMPLEMENTATION

This invention begins with a structural base panel FIG. 1-a that supports the entire drawer assembly. The drawer base can fit into a dresser FIG. 2-a and can use sliding hardware or can slide between pieces of small dimensional lumber FIG. 2-b. The drawer base FIG. 3-b can have an upright FIG. 3-a fastened to the leading edge to hide the objects inside the drawer. The drawer base and the drawer front can be fastened with hinges FIG. 3-c so the front could be folded down for flat packing ability. The front FIG. 4-a and base FIG. 4-b can use a gusset FIG. 4-d for additional stability across the joint with or without hinged joining the two panels FIG. 4-c. The drawer assembly can have a rigid upright in the back as well as the front FIG. 5-a joined to the base FIG. 5-b. The rigid side could be in at least two sections FIG. 6-a so that the hinges could be fastened between them FIG. 6-b. The front FIG. 7-a, back FIG. 7-b, and side assemblies FIG. 7-c can all be fastened with hinges on the corners FIG. 7-d so the entire wall assembly can be folded in flat pack applications. A drawer face FIG. 8-b can be fastened to the drawer assembly FIG. 8-a for decorative purposes.

Alternatively, the drawer assembly can have the drawer base FIG. 9-a on top of the drawer front FIG. 9-c. The drawer base can have a cutout FIG. 9-b so that a basket or bin can hang from the opening. In this method the drawer structural base FIG. 10-a can have an opening FIG. 10-b which a basket or bin can hang from. A gusset FIG. 10-c can extend down past the drawer base FIG. 11-a to hide the sliding or hinging hardware FIG. 11-b. If utilizing the hanging drawer method, the drawer front FIG. 12-c can extend up past the drawer base FIG. 12-a to hide the sliding or hinging hardware FIG. 12-b.

REFERENCES (INCORPORATED HEREIN BY REFERENCE)

• 1. “Sing Core Patent”: This patent describes the Sing Core technology, including its composition, manufacturing process, and applications in various industries, including construction.