An article support

Abstract

An article support (10) used for supporting articles such as shelves, racks, bars or hooks on a vertical support surface. The article support (10) includes a vertical support surface engaging body (12) which engages with the vertical support surface, an article supporting element (16) connected to the vertical support surface engaging body (12) and shaped to engage with and hold an article in position, and a surface mounting element (22) connected to the vertical support surface engaging body (12). The surface mounting element (22) is shaped to pass into an opening in the vertical support surface and includes a locking protrusion (26) that can pass into the opening when the article support (10) is in a first orientation relative to the vertical support surface. When the article support (10) is rotated into a second orientation, the locking protrusion (26) prevents the surface mounting element (22) from being withdrawn from the opening, thereby securing the article support (10) to the vertical support surface.

Description

[0001] AN ARTICLE SUPPORT

[0002] BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0003] This patent application relates to an article support for supporting articles such as shelves, racks, bars or hooks or any other article on a vertical support surface.

[0004] SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0005] An article support comprises: a vertical support surface engaging body which in use engages with the vertical support surface; an article supporting element connected to the vertical support surface engaging body, the article supporting element shaped to engage with and hold an article in position on the vertical support surface; and a surface mounting element connected to the vertical support surface engaging body, the surface mounting element shaped to pass into an opening in the vertical support surface, the surface mounting element including a locking protrusion that is able to pass into the opening when the article support is in a first orientation relative to the vertical support surface, and wherein the locking protrusion prevents the surface mounting element from being withdrawn from the opening when the article support is rotated into a second orientation relative to the vertical support surface.

[0006] The support surface engaging body may be shaped so that a portion of the support surface engaging body extends down and away from the article supporting element and surface mounting element and so engages with the vertical support surface over a larger surface area. In one example, the article supporting element is adapted for supporting a shelf and has a flat upper surface and a protrusion which is inserted, in use, into a hole drilled in the bottom of the shelf to prevent the shelf from slipping with respect to the article support.

[0007] The article support may also include a support brace connected between the support surface engaging body and the article supporting element thereby providing more support to the article supporting element.

[0008] The locking protrusion may include two arms extending away from the surface mounting element.

[0009] BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0010] Figure 1 is a front perspective view of an article support in accordance with an example embodiment;

[0011] Figure 2 is a rear perspective view of the article support of Figure 1 ;

[0012] Figure 3 is a side view of the article support of Figure 1 ;

[0013] Figure 4 is a top view of the article support of Figure 1 ;

[0014] Figure 5 is a bottom view of the article support of Figure 1 ;

[0015] Figure 6 is a front view of the article support of Figure 1 ;

[0016] Figure 7 is a rear view of the article support of Figure 1 ;

[0017] Figure 8 shows the article support of Figure 1 being inserted into an opening in a vertical support surface;

[0018] Figure 9 shows the article support of Figure 1 inserted into the opening;

[0019] Figure 10 shows the article support of Figure 1 inserted into the opening and rotated with respect to the vertical support surface; and Figure 11 shows the article support of Figure 1 holding a shelf on the vertical support surface.

[0020] DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0021] The present invention relates an article support for supporting articles such as shelves, racks, bars or hooks or any other article on a vertical support surface.

[0022] The vertical support surface could be a wall, a bookshelf, a cupboard or any other vertical support surface on which a user wants to support an article.

[0023] Referring to the accompanying figures, an article support 10 includes a vertical support surface engaging body 12 which in use engages with the vertical support surface 14 (this can best be seen in Figures 8 to 10).

[0024] The vertical support surface engaging body 12 includes a flat rear surface configured to lie flush against the vertical support surface 14.

[0025] An article supporting element 16 is connected to the vertical support surface engaging body 12.

[0026] The article supporting element 16 is shaped to engage with and hold an article in position on the vertical support surface 14.

[0027] In the illustrated embodiment, the article supporting element 16 extends horizontally outward from the vertical support surface engaging body 12 at an angle substantially perpendicular to the vertical support surface 14.

[0028] Additionally, in the illustrated embodiment, the example article supporting element 16 is adapted for supporting a shelf and so has a flat upper surface 18 and a protrusion 20 which is inserted into a hole drilled in the bottom of the shelf to prevent the shelf from slipping with respect to the article support 10. It will be appreciated that in other embodiments, when the article to be supported is different from a shelf, the shape of the article supporting element 16 will differ depending on the intended use. For example, the article supporting element 16 could include a hook from which an article is hung on the vertical support surface.

[0029] A surface mounting element 22 is connected to the vertical support surface engaging body 12.

[0030] The surface mounting element 22 is shaped to pass into an opening 24 in the vertical support surface. An example of the opening is shown in Figure 8.

[0031] The surface mounting element 22 includes a locking protrusion 26. In the illustrated embodiment, the locking protrusion 26 includes two arms extending away from the surface mounting element 22. However, it will be appreciated that the shape of the locking protrusion 26 may differ depending on the shape of the opening 24. The two arms work well with an opening 24 shaped as shown in Figure 8.

[0032] In addition, the gap between body 12 and protrusion 26 is variable dependent on the application for which the article support 10 will be used.

[0033] The surface mounting element 22 in the illustrated embodiment has a cylindrical or substantially cylindrical shape.

[0034] Referring to Figure 8, the locking protrusion 26 is able to pass into the opening 24 when the article support 10 is in a first orientation relative to the vertical support surface as shown in this Figure.

[0035] Thus, the surface mounting element 22 and locking protrusion 26 are inserted into the opening 24 as shown in Figure 9 and the article support 10 is rotated in the direction of the arrow in Figure 9 into a second orientation relative to the vertical support surface. The second orientation is shown in Figure 10 and 11. It will be appreciated that due to the shape of the opening 24 and the position of the locking protrusion 26, the locking protrusion 26 will prevent the surface mounting element 22 from being withdrawn from the opening 24 when the article support is in this second orientation, as illustrated.

[0036] Referring to Figure 11 , a shelf 28 is now placed on top of the article support.

[0037] It will be appreciated that in the illustrated embodiment, the support surface engaging body 12 is shaped so that a portion of the support surface engaging body 12 extends down and away from the article supporting element 16 and surface mounting element 22 and so engages with the vertical support surface over a larger surface area.

[0038] Additionally, a support brace 30 is connected between the support surface engaging body 12 and the article supporting element 16 thereby providing more support to the article supporting element 16.

[0039] It will be appreciated that the article support 10 is easily installed by a user who simply inserts the article support 10 into the opening 24 and rotates it into position.

[0040] In some example applications, such as for shelving, the vertical support surface will have a number of openings 24 formed in the vertical support surface at different heights so that the height of the shelf on the vertical support surface can be selected by the user.

[0041] The article support 10 can also be used for various thickness of Cardboard, Corrugated board, Correx Board and Fiber Boards, for example Xanita™ Fiber Boards.

[0042] It will be appreciated that the article support 10 can be made from any suitable material such as a moulded plastic or a suitable metal material.

Claims

CLAIMS:1 . An article support for supporting articles on a vertical support surface, the article support including: a vertical support surface engaging body which in use engages with the vertical support surface; an article supporting element connected to the vertical support surface engaging body, the article supporting element shaped to engage with and hold an article in position on the vertical support surface; and a surface mounting element connected to the vertical support surface engaging body, the surface mounting element shaped to pass into an opening in the vertical support surface, the surface mounting element including a locking protrusion that is able to pass into the opening when the article support is in a first orientation relative to the vertical support surface, and wherein the locking protrusion prevents the surface mounting element from being withdrawn from the opening when the article support is rotated into a second orientation relative to the vertical support surface.

2. An article support according to claim 1 wherein the support surface engaging body is shaped so that a portion of the support surface engaging body extends down and away from the article supporting element and surface mounting element and so engages with the vertical support surface over a larger surface area.

3. An article support according to claim 1 or claim 2 wherein the article supporting element is adapted for supporting a shelf and has a flat upper surface and a protrusion which is inserted, in use, into a hole in the bottom of the shelf to prevent the shelf from slipping with respect to the article support.

4. An article support according to claim 1 or claim 2 wherein the article supporting element includes a hook from which an article is hung on the vertical support surface.

5. An article support according to any preceding claim further including a support brace connected between the support surface engaging body and the article supporting element thereby providing more support to the article supporting element.

6. An article support according to any preceding claim wherein the locking protrusion includes two arms extending away from the surface mounting element.

7. An article support according to any preceding claim wherein the surface mounting element has a cylindrical or substantially cylindrical shape.

8. An article support according to any preceding claim wherein the vertical support surface engaging body includes a flat rear surface configured to lie flush against the vertical support surface.

9. An article support according to any preceding claim wherein, in use, the article supporting element extends horizontally outward from the vertical support surface engaging body at an angle substantially perpendicular to the vertical support surface.

10. An article support according to any preceding claim wherein the article support is formed as a single integral piece from a molded plastic material or metal material.

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