cart

Abstract

The cart 1 includes a base 2, a plurality of storage trays 3, and at least two vertical shafts 4. Each tray of the plurality of storage trays 3 is attached to at least one of the at least two vertical shafts 4 via at least one fastener 6. The cart 1 includes at least one horizontal rail 5 attached to the base 2. The at least two vertical shafts 4 are movably attached to the at least one horizontal rail via rail wheels so as to increase or decrease a horizontal spacing between at least some of the plurality of trays. The at least two vertical shafts 2 are telescopically extendable so as to increase or decrease a vertical spacing between at least some of the plurality of trays.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a cart for storing or displaying items. [Background technology]

[0002] Such carts are known to ordinary users as portable cabinets with multiple drawers and trays. Examples of drawers and trays include tool storage systems, library shelves, jewelry shelves, medical shelves, etc. Users of such known carts cannot comfortably access all the trays and drawers of the cart at once. For example, in the case of tool storage systems, users waste time searching for the right tool in the right drawer. Furthermore, when using conventional tool storage systems, users need additional time and attention to return the tool to the right drawer. Most users skip this step, and so at the end of the day, tools end up piling up at the top of the cart. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0003] The present invention aims to remedy the shortcomings of the prior art and provide a cart that allows the user to comfortably access all trays / drawers at once. The present invention, together with other objects that will become apparent from the disclosure hereinafter, provides a cart having one or more of the features recited in the appended claims. [Means for solving the problem]

[0004] According to a first aspect of the present invention, a cart includes a base, a plurality of storage trays, and at least two vertical shafts. Each tray of the plurality of storage trays is attached to at least one of the at least two vertical shafts via at least one fastener. The cart includes at least one horizontal rail attached to the base. The at least two vertical shafts are movably mounted on the at least one horizontal rail via rail wheels to increase or decrease a horizontal spacing between at least some of the plurality of trays. The at least two vertical shafts are configured to extend telescopically to increase a vertical spacing between at least some of the plurality of trays. These features allow a user to move the trays laterally and upwardly, which facilitates access to the trays and improves visibility of items stored therein.

[0005] Furthermore, the trays can be stacked on the base in the form of at least one column and are alternately mounted on any one of at least two vertical shafts, which essentially means that if a tray can be mounted on a first shaft, then the first next tray can be mounted on a second shaft, the second next tray can be mounted on the first shaft, the third next tray can be mounted on the second shaft, and so on.

[0006] To improve the stability of the cart, the width of the base is greater than the combined width of the stacked trays.

[0007] Advantageously, the at least two vertical shafts comprise vertical members arranged to provide a pulling or pushing force for moving the at least two vertical shafts from a retracted position to an extended position and vice versa, such vertical members supporting the upward movement of the trays even when the trays are fully loaded, and for improved safety and ease of use, said vertical members are arranged to provide a damping force for controlling the speed of extension and / or retraction of the at least two vertical shafts.

[0008] Furthermore, to improve the structural rigidity of the cart, the cart comprises at least one horizontal shaft to which the at least two vertical shafts can be attached, said horizontal shaft being telescopically extendable.

[0009] The base and / or the at least one horizontal shaft comprises a horizontal member attached to the at least two vertical shafts for moving the at least two vertical shafts on the at least one rail and / or for supporting the telescopic movement of the at least one horizontal shaft by applying a pulling or pushing force to the at least two vertical shafts. Such horizontal member supports the horizontal movement of the tray even when the tray is fully loaded. To improve safety and ease of use, the horizontal member is arranged to provide a damping force for controlling the speed of movement of the at least two vertical shafts moving on the at least one rail of the base.

[0010] Access to the interior of the tray can be further improved by tilting and / or moving the tray towards the user. Thus, the cart comprises at least one right-angle rail, the leading end of which is attached to at least one fastener of at least one storage tray. The at least one storage tray is movably mounted to the at least one right-angle rail via rail wheels. Furthermore, the right-angle rail is attachable to the at least one fastener of the at least one storage tray via a rotatable joint for tilting the at least one storage tray.

[0011] The vertical and horizontal members are preferably at least one of gas-operated members, hydraulic members, mechanical members, spring-operated members, and electrically controlled members.

[0012] The base includes wheels, such as oscillating caster wheels, for facilitating movement of the cart. The wheels include a locking member, such as a swivel lock or caster pads, for immobilizing the cart.

[0013] To enhance the ease of use of the cart of the present invention, the cart includes at least one electrical socket connectable to a power source. The cart includes an air reel fluidly connectable to a source of pressurized air or an air vacuum source. The cart includes a first light source mountable to the base and / or at least one horizontal shaft to illuminate an area surrounding the cart. The cart includes a plurality of second light sources mountable to a plurality of storage trays, the second light sources illuminating the storage trays. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0014] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is a front view of the device of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a rear view of the device of the present invention. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a front view of the device of the present invention. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a front view of the device of the present invention. [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 is a side view of the device of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0015] The invention will now be further described with reference to the drawings of exemplary embodiments of the cart of the invention, which are not intended to limit the scope of the appended claims.

[0016] Where the same reference numbers are used in different figures, they refer to the same items.

[0017] 1 and 2 show the cart 1 according to the present invention in a folded state. A user can unfold the cart 1 by moving the tray 3 upward and sideways. As can be seen better in FIG. 2, the horizontal member 7 supports the horizontal shaft to extend telescopically and the two vertical shafts to push sideways to support the lateral movement of the tray 3. Meanwhile, the vertical member 7 supports the two vertical shafts to extend telescopically to support the upward movement of the tray 3. As shown in FIG. 3, the base 2, which has a width greater than the total width of the trays 3, allows the cart 1 to stand stably on the floor in the unfolded state. A user can return the cart 1 to the folded position by pushing the tray 3 downward and toward the center of the base 2. The horizontal and vertical members damp the movement speed of the tray with a damping force, allowing the user to gently return the cart to the folded position.

[0018] In a second embodiment of the present invention, as shown in Fig. 4, the trays of the cart 1 may be arranged in a columnar form. The trays 3 are alternately mounted on two vertical shafts 4. When the vertical shafts 4 move laterally, a comfortable access space is formed between the trays 3. In this case, the two vertical shafts 4 do not need to be extended. If more space is required between the trays 3, the vertical shafts 4 can be extended further.

[0019] As shown in Figure 5, the tray 3 can be tilted downward and moved forward towards the user to further increase the accessibility of the tray and improve visibility of the contents therein. To that end, the tray 3 is movably mounted on a right-angle rail 5 to allow for forward and backward movement of the tray 3. The right-angle rail 3 is also mounted on a vertical shaft via a rotatable joint to allow for downward and upward tilting of the tray 3.

[0020] A light source 15 may be mounted on the cart 1 to provide ambient lighting. A small light source 16 may be mounted on the bottom surface of the upper tray to provide lighting for the lower tray. An air reel 14 may be mounted on the cart 1 to provide vacuum suction and / or air pressure to the user.

[0021] An electrical socket 13 may be provided on the cart to provide high and / or low voltage power to the user.

[0022] For ease of transportation, the cart 1 may be equipped with wheels 12, such as lockable caster wheels.

[0023] The cart 1 of the present invention may be at least one of a tool storage system, a library shelf, a jewelry shelf, and a medical shelf.

[0024] Although the present invention has been described herein with reference to an exemplary embodiment of the method of the present invention, the present invention is not limited to this specific embodiment, which can be modified in various ways without departing from the present invention. Therefore, the described exemplary embodiment should not be used to interpret the appended claims strictly according to the same embodiment. On the contrary, the embodiment is only intended to explain the language of the appended claims, without the intention of limiting the scope of the appended claims to the exemplary embodiment. Therefore, the scope of protection of the present invention should be interpreted only according to the appended claims, and any ambiguity that may arise in the language of the claims should be resolved using the exemplary embodiment.

Claims

1. A cart (1) comprising a base (2), a plurality of storage trays (3), and at least two vertical shafts (4), each of the plurality of storage trays (3) being attached to at least one of the at least two vertical shafts (4) via at least one fastener (6), the cart (1) comprising at least one horizontal rail (5) attached to the base (2), the at least two vertical shafts (4) being movably attached to the at least one horizontal rail (5) via rail wheels to increase or decrease a horizontal spacing between at least some of the plurality of trays, and the at least two vertical shafts (2) being telescopically extendable and retractable to increase a vertical spacing between at least some of the plurality of trays.

2. 2. The cart according to claim 1, characterized in that the trays (3) can be stacked on the base (2) in the form of at least one column and are alternately mounted on any one of at least two vertical shafts (4).

3. A cart according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the width of the base (2) is greater than the total width of the stacked trays (3).

4. A cart according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the at least two vertical shafts (4) are provided with vertical members (7) arranged to provide a pulling or pushing force for moving the at least two vertical shafts (4) from a retracted position to an extended position and vice versa.

5. A cart according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the vertical members (7) are arranged to provide a damping force for controlling the speed of extension and / or retraction of the at least two vertical shafts (4).

6. A cart according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that at least two vertical shafts (4) are attached to at least one horizontal shaft, said horizontal shaft being telescopically extendable.

7. 7. A cart according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the base (2) and / or the at least one horizontal shaft (4) comprises a horizontal member (7) attached to the at least two vertical shafts (4) and adapted to move the at least two vertical shafts (4) on at least one rail (5) of the base (2) and to support the telescopic movement of the at least one horizontal shaft (4) by applying a pulling or pushing force to the at least two vertical shafts (4).

8. A cart according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the horizontal member (7) is arranged to provide a damping force for controlling the speed of movement of the at least two vertical shafts (4) on the at least one rail (5).

9. A cart as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that it comprises at least one right-angled rail (5) attached to at least one fastener (6) at the tip position of at least one storage tray (3), the at least one storage tray (3) being movably attached to the at least one right-angled rail (5) via rail wheels.

10. 10. A cart according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that the right-angle rail (5) is attached to at least one fastener (6) on at least one storage tray (3) via a rotation joint (11) for tilting the at least one storage tray (3).

11. 11. A cart according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the member (7) is at least one of the following: a gas-operated member, a hydraulic member, a mechanical member, a spring-operated member, an electrically controlled member.

12. 12. A cart as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 11, characterized in that the base (2) is provided with wheels (12), such as oscillating caster wheels, for facilitating movement of the cart (1), the wheels (12) being provided with locking members, such as swivel locks and caster pads, for immobilizing the cart.

13. 13. A cart according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it comprises at least one electrical socket (13) which can be connected to a power source.

14. 14. A cart according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it comprises at least one air reel (14) fluidly connectable to a source of pressurized air or an air vacuum source.

15. 15. A cart according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it comprises light sources (15) mountable on the base and / or on the top storage tray (3) for illuminating the surroundings of the cart (1).

16. 16. A cart as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 15, further comprising a plurality of light sources (16) attachable to a plurality of storage trays (3), the light sources (16) being adapted to illuminate the plurality of storage trays (3).

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