Motorisation unit for a piece of furniture

Abstract

The present invention relates to a drive unit (32) for an opening panel (14, 74) of a piece of furniture (10), in particular an opening panel of a piece of kitchen furniture, comprising an actuator (34) which controls the movement of a movable element (14, 76) in a longitudinal axial direction (A1) between a closed position and an open position, characterised in that it comprises a plate (38) intended to be attached to the structure (23) of the piece of furniture (10), and a keeper (50) which is guided so as to slide axially on the plate (38) and the movement of which is controlled by the actuator (34), the keeper (50) being provided with a gripping member (54) capable of engaging with a plate (56) carried by the movable element (14, 76) so as to be able to be secured to and detached from the movable element (14, 76).

Description

Technical field of the invention

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of furniture, in particular kitchen furniture.

[0002] The invention relates more particularly to the motorization of the opening and closing of an opening in a piece of furniture, for example the motorization of a sliding drawer. Technical background

[0003] Furniture is already known to have a motorized system that allows the opening or closing of a drawer or doors to be controlled. This type of system uses, for example, a motorized actuator with an arm that pushes or pulls the drawer or doors.

[0004] Document DE 10 2008 020285 A1 discloses a drawer equipped with a motorization system.

[0005] A disadvantage of known systems is that they generally require the creation of a custom-made piece of furniture specifically adapted to accommodate the motorization system. In addition, known systems have problems with space, cost and reliability and do not allow for easy switching from manual to motorized mode. Summary of the invention

[0006] The invention proposes to solve the problems mentioned above in a simple and economical manner by proposing a motorization assembly for a piece of furniture opening, in particular a kitchen piece of furniture opening, comprising an actuator which controls the movement of a movable element in a longitudinal axial direction between a closed position and an open position, characterized in that it comprises a plate intended to be fixed to the structure of the piece of furniture, a pallet which is guided in axial sliding on the plate and the movement of which is controlled by the actuator, the pallet being provided with a gripping member capable of cooperating with a plate carried by the movable element so as to be able to be secured to and detached from the movable element.

[0007] The motorization assembly according to the invention is easy to install and can be integrated into an existing piece of furniture that was not originally intended to be motorized. The motorization assembly according to the invention can work with both a drawer unit and a piece of furniture with pivoting doors. In addition, it allows easy switching to manual mode, for example in the event of a power outage or if the user wishes to open the piece of furniture manually.

[0008] The motorization assembly according to the invention can be controlled by different means, for example with a voice recognition module or with a control button placed near the furniture, which makes it possible to control the opening of the furniture without the use of hands. The motorization assembly according to the invention is therefore particularly suitable for a piece of furniture intended to contain a trash can, for which it is particularly advantageous to be able to open it while the user's hands are busy or dirty.

[0009] Hands-free opening and closing of the furniture also ensures better hygiene and makes its contents more easily accessible to the disabled.

[0010] According to other characteristics of the invention: the gripping member is an electromagnet which allows the pallet to be secured to and detached from the movable element depending on the power supply of the electromagnet; the plate comprises a longitudinal groove and the pallet comprises a guide member which is received in the longitudinal groove; the plate is formed in a generally flat metal plate, the upper face of the plate comprises a longitudinal boss, and the longitudinal groove is arranged in the longitudinal boss; the actuator comprises a scissor mechanism which comprises a folded state corresponding to the closed position of the pallet and a deployed state corresponding to the open position of the pallet; the scissor mechanism is controlled by a worm mechanism driven by an electric motor, the worm mechanism being mounted on the plate; the movable element comprises a carriage which is slidably mounted on the plate;the carriage comprises at the front at least one roller which is designed to roll against the rear face of the opening when it is opened or closed; the plate is equipped at the front with at least one actuating arm capable of causing the opening of the opening during an opening phase, the carriage comprising an actuating member which cooperates with the actuating arm during the opening phase; the plate comprises at the front an angle element designed to be pressed against a front edge of the structure of the furniture.;

[0011] The invention also proposes a piece of furniture comprising a fixed structure and an opening mounted to move relative to the fixed structure between a closed position and an open position, characterized in that it is equipped with the motorization assembly according to one of the preceding characteristics. Brief description of the figures

[0012] Other characteristics and advantages of the invention will appear during the reading of the detailed description which follows for the understanding of which reference will be made to the appended drawings in which: [ Fig. 1 ] is an exploded perspective view which schematically represents a piece of furniture with a sliding drawer equipped with a motorization assembly according to a first embodiment of the invention; [ Fig.2 ] is an axial sectional view along plane II-II which represents the furniture of the figure 1 in a closed state; [ Fig.3 ] is a view similar to that of the figure 2 which represents the furniture of the figure 1 in an open state; [ Fig.4 ] is a top view which schematically represents the entire motorization of the figure 1 ; [ Fig.5 ] is a front view which schematically represents the entire motorization of the figure 1 ; [ Fig.6] is a side view which schematically represents the motorization assembly of the figure 1 ; [ Fig.7 ] is an exploded perspective view which schematically represents a piece of furniture with pivoting doors equipped with a motorization assembly according to a second embodiment; [ Fig.8 ] is a top view which schematically represents the entire motorization of the figure 7 in closed position; [ Fig.9 ] is a view similar to that of the figure 8 which schematically represents the entire motorization of the figure 7 in open position. Detailed description of the invention

[0013] In the following description, identical, similar or analogous elements will be designated by the same reference numbers. First embodiment

[0014] It has been represented on the figures 1 to 3a piece of furniture 10 according to a first embodiment provided with an opening 12, here a drawer 14 sliding in a longitudinal direction A1, between a closed position, illustrated by the figure 2 , and an open position, illustrated by the figure 3 .

[0015] In the remainder of the description, a longitudinal axial orientation will be used, without limitation, along the longitudinal direction A1, oriented from front to rear, which corresponds to an orientation from left to right considering the figures 1 to 3 notably.

[0016] The drawer 14 is for example used to place a waste collection bin 16 such as a trash can.

[0017] Of course, the invention applies to other types of furniture and other types of opening.

[0018] The drawer 14 here comprises a front 18, side walls 20 and a bottom wall 22. It is here slidably mounted in the structure 23 of the piece of furniture 10 which has a generally parallelepiped shape formed of two side walls 24, 26, a bottom wall 28 and an upper wall 30.

[0019] The cabinet 10 is equipped with a motorization assembly 32 in accordance with the teachings of the invention. This motorization assembly 32 comprises an actuator 34 which controls the movement of a movable element 36, here the drawer 14, in the longitudinal direction A1, between its closed position and its open position.

[0020] Advantageously, the motorization assembly 32 comprises a plate 38 which is fixed to the structure of the furniture 10, here on the upper face 40 of the lower wall 28. The plate 38 is here in the form of a plate provided on its front edge with an angle element 42, or rim, oriented downwards. This angle element 42 forms a stop which comes to bear against the front edge 44 of the furniture 10.

[0021] The plate 38 comprises a longitudinal groove 46 which is arranged in a longitudinal boss 48 to allow the guiding of a support element of the actuator 34.

[0022] The actuator 34 is arranged on the plate 38 so as to be able to control the longitudinal movement of a pallet 50 capable of causing the drawer 14 to slide towards its open position. The pallet 50 is provided with a guide member 52, for example a pin, which slides in the longitudinal groove 46.

[0023] The pallet 50 is provided with a gripping member constituted here by an electromagnet 54 capable of cooperating by magnetic attraction with a plate 56, formed of a metal part or a magnet, arranged on the rear face 58 of the drawer 14. A control unit 60 connected to the electromagnet 54 makes it possible to control the attachment or detachment of the pallet 50 on the drawer 14, depending on whether the user wishes to open the drawer 14 manually or electrically.

[0024] It is noted that, according to an alternative embodiment, the electromagnet 54 could be replaced by another mechanism allowing the pallet 50 to attach and detach from the plate 56.

[0025] The actuator 34 here comprises an electric motor 62 which is connected to the control unit 60 and which controls the longitudinal movement of the pallet 50 by means of a scissor mechanism 64. The scissor mechanism 64 has a folded state corresponding to the closed position of the pallet 50 and a deployed state corresponding to the open position of the pallet 50.

[0026] Advantageously, the scissor mechanism 64 and its pivoting elements are guided axially by means of guide members 52 which slide in the groove 46.

[0027] The scissor mechanism 64 is here controlled by a worm mechanism 66 driven by the electric motor 62, the worm mechanism 66 being mounted on the plate 38. The scissor mechanism 64 here comprises several rods 68 articulated on each other and forming two deployable branches, one of the branches being articulated on a movable nut 70 screwed onto the worm.

[0028] The operation of the motorization assembly 32 according to the first embodiment is as follows.

[0029] To install the motorization assembly 32 according to the first embodiment, it is sufficient to remove the drawer 14 from the cabinet 10 and then to fix the motorization assembly 32 on the lower face 40 of the cabinet 10. It is noted that all the elements of the motorization assembly 32 are carried by the plate 38. It is therefore sufficient to fix the plate 38, previously equipped with the actuator 34, on the cabinet 10 and then to connect the control unit 60 to a source of electrical energy (not shown) and to a control interface 72. The control interface 72 allows a user to control the electric motor 62 and the electromagnet 54, for example by means of control buttons or by voice if the interface includes voice recognition software.

[0030] When drawer 14 is in the closed position, as illustrated by the figure 2 , the pallet 50 is in contact with the plate 56. To cause the drawer 14 to open, the electric motor 62 is supplied with electric current so as to cause the pallet 50 to move longitudinally forward, thus driving the drawer 14 forward.

[0031] To cause the drawer 14 to close, the electromagnet 54 is powered so as to allow the pallet 50 to be hooked onto the plate 56, and the electric motor 62 is powered with electric current so as to cause the pallet 50 to move longitudinally towards the rear, thus driving the drawer 14 towards the rear. Second embodiment

[0032] THE figures 7 and 8represent a second embodiment of the piece of furniture 10 equipped with a motorization assembly 32 according to the invention. Here, we will mainly describe the technical differences compared to the first embodiment, the parts not described being similar or identical to the first embodiment.

[0033] The piece of furniture 10 of the second embodiment is a piece of furniture comprising two doors 74 pivotally mounted on the structure of the piece of furniture 10, replacing the drawer 14 of the first embodiment.

[0034] Of course, the motorization assembly 32 according to the invention operates with a piece of furniture 10 having a single pivoting door.

[0035] The plate 38 is here provided with a carriage 76, or tray, which is mounted to slide longitudinally on the upper face of the plate 38, here by means of two rails 78. The carriage 76 here has the overall shape of a plate which extends parallel to the plate 38. The carriage 76 thus constitutes a longitudinally movable element, in the manner of the drawer 14. The pallet 50 therefore rests here against the rear edge of the carriage 76, in order to allow the actuator 34 to control the longitudinal movement of the carriage 76.

[0036] The tray 16 can here be positioned on the trolley 76.

[0037] Advantageously, the carriage 76 comprises at the front, at each corner, a roller 80 which is designed to roll against the rear face of the associated door 74, when opening and closing the doors 74.

[0038] In addition, the plate 38 is equipped at the front with two actuating arms 82 which are capable of causing the doors 74 to open during an opening phase. The actuating arms 82 are here pivotally mounted on the plate 38 and they are actuated by lugs 83 positioned under the carriage 76 so that the sliding of the carriage 76 towards the open position causes the actuating arms 82 to pivot outwards, towards the doors 74 in the direction of their opening.

[0039] Advantageously, the actuating arms 82 comprise at each end a right-angled portion 85 provided at its free end with a pad 87 which comes to bear against the rear of the associated door 74.

[0040] The carriage 76 advantageously comprises elastic connecting members with the doors 74. These elastic connecting members can be hooked to the rear of the doors 74 and to the carriage 76 so that, when the carriage 76 slides backwards, that is to say during a closing phase, it pulls on the doors 74 to return them to their respective closed positions. The elastic connecting members can also be hooked to the actuating arms 82.

[0041] The operation of the motorization assembly 32 according to the second embodiment is similar to that of the first embodiment. During an opening phase, the user triggers the opening of the furniture by means of the control interface 72. The electric motor 62 is powered so that the actuator 34 causes the longitudinal movement of the carriage 76 from its closed position, or stored position, illustrated by the figure 8, towards its opening position illustrated by the figure 9 .

[0042] By sliding forward, the carriage 76 pushes the doors 74 by means of the rollers 80 and the actuating arms 82, pivoting the doors 74 around their hinges outwards.

[0043] During a closing phase, the user triggers the closing of the cabinet 10 by means of the control interface 72. The electric motor 62 is powered so that the actuator 34 causes the longitudinal movement of the carriage 76 from its open position to its closed position. For this purpose, the electromagnet 54 is powered which allows the pallet 50 to hook onto the carriage 76 and pull it backwards.

[0044] By moving backwards, the carriage 76 drives the doors 74 towards their respective closing positions thanks to the elastic connecting members 84. According to an advantageous embodiment, the carriage 76 is equipped with weight sensors 86 which are connected to the control unit 60. They make it possible to regularly measure the weight of the elements loaded in the tray 16 and to provide this information to the control interface 72.

[0045] It is noted that the motorization assembly 32 according to the first and second embodiments allows the cabinet 10 to operate manually, without electricity, when the actuator 34 is not activated. Advantageously, the control method can cause the motorization assembly 32 to be disengaged when an obstacle is detected on the path of the drawer 14 or the carriage 76. In this case, it is possible to provide that the drawer 14 or the carriage 76 are automatically controlled by the actuator 34 to return to the rest position, or closed position. This device constitutes a safety feature because, once the electromagnet is automatically switched off, the cabinet 10 is in manual mode. Thus, it prevents accidents such as a finger being trapped during closing, for example. LEGEND

[0046] 10: furniture 12: opening 14: drawer 16: tray 18: front 20: side walls 22: back wall 23: structure 24, 26: side walls 28: bottom wall 30: top wall 32: motorization assembly 34: actuator 36: moving element 38: plate 40: top face 42: corner element 44: front edge 46: longitudinal groove 48: longitudinal boss 50: pallet 52: guide member 54: electromagnet 56: plate 58: rear face 60: control unit 62: electric motor 64: scissor mechanism 66: worm mechanism 68: rods 70: moving nut 72: control interface 74: doors 76: carriage 78: rails 80: roller 82: actuating arm 83 : lugs 84: elastic connecting member 85: right-angled portion A1: longitudinal direction

Claims

1. Motorization assembly (32) for an opening panel (14, 74) of a piece of furniture (10), in particular an opening panel of a piece of kitchen furniture, comprising an actuator (34) which controls the movement of a movable element (14, 76) in a longitudinal axial direction (A1) between a closed position and an open position, characterised in that it comprises a plate (38) intended to be attached to the structure (23) of the piece of furniture (10), a vane (50) which is guided so as to slide axially on the plate (38) and the movement of which is controlled by the actuator (34), the vane (50) being provided with a gripping member (54) for engaging with a pad (56) carried by the movable element (14, 76) so as to be able to be rigidly connected to and disconnected from the movable element (14, 76), and in that the gripping member (54) is an electromagnet which allows the vane to be rigidly connected to and disconnected from the movable element (14, 76) depending on the power supply to the electromagnet (54).

2. Motorization assembly (32) according to claim 1, characterised in that the plate (38) comprises a longitudinal groove (46) and in that the vane (50) comprises a guide member (52) which is received in the longitudinal groove (46).

3. Motorization assembly (32) according to the preceding claim, characterised in that the plate (38) is formed in a generally flat metal sheet, in that the upper face of the plate (38) comprises a longitudinal boss (48), and in that the longitudinal groove (46) is arranged in the longitudinal boss (48).

4. Motorization assembly (32) according to any of the preceding claims, characterised in that the actuator (34) comprises a scissor mechanism (64) which has a folded state corresponding to the closed position of the vane (50) and an extended state corresponding to the open position of the vane (50).

5. Motorization assembly (32) according to the preceding claim, characterised in that the scissor mechanism (64) is controlled by a worm screw mechanism (66) driven by an electric motor (62), the worm screw mechanism (66) being mounted on the plate (38).

6. Motorization assembly (32) according to any of the preceding claims, characterised in that the movable element (14, 76) comprises a carriage (76) which is mounted so as to slide on the plate (38).

7. Motorization assembly (32) according to the preceding claim, characterised in that the carriage (76) comprises at the front at least one roller (80) which is designed to roll against the rear face of the opening panel (74) when it is opened or closed.

8. Motorization assembly (32) according to claim 6 or 7, characterised in that the plate (38) is equipped at the front with at least one actuating arm (82) for causing the opening of the opening panel (74) during an opening phase, the carriage (76) comprising an actuating member (83) which engages with the actuating arm (82) during the opening phase.

9. Motorization assembly (32) according to any of the preceding claims, characterised in that the plate (38) comprises at the front an angle element (42) designed to be pressed against a front edge (44) of the structure (23) of the piece of furniture (10).

10. Piece of furniture (10) comprising a fixed structure (23) and an opening panel (14, 74) mounted so as to be movable relative to the fixed structure (23) between a closed position and an open position, characterised in that it is equipped with the motorization assembly (32) according to any of the preceding claims.

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