Drawer Hooking Lever Geometry for Front or Side Unhooking

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing hooking devices for connecting drawers to longitudinal guides are inconvenient for unhooking wide drawers from the sides and low-positioned drawers from the front, as they require uncomfortable hand positioning.

Innovation Solution

A hooking device with a lever having distinct surface zones for activating forces perpendicular and parallel to the guide's longitudinal direction, allowing unhooking from both the front and sides, and featuring an elastically yielding portion for reversible oscillation.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If the drawer is positioned low in the furniture, then space utilization is improved, but front access for lever activation is blocked

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedrawer positioningVSAvoidlever activation access
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The command lever provides locally differentiated activation surfaces: the second surface zone oriented parallel to the guide's longitudinal direction allows activation from the front even when the drawer is positioned low, while the first surface zone maintains side activation capability. This resolves the contradiction by providing direction-specific access points.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #3Local quality

2Adaptability or versatility

If the drawer is wide, then storage capacity is improved, but side access for lever activation becomes uncomfortable

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedrawer widthVSAvoidhand positioning comfort
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The command lever incorporates two distinct surface zones: a first surface zone perpendicular to the guide's longitudinal direction that can be activated from the front of the drawer, and a second surface zone parallel to the guide's longitudinal direction for side activation. This allows users to choose the more comfortable activation direction based on drawer width and user position.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #3Local quality

Applied Scientific Principles

This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.

Function Achieved in This Case

Enables easy unhooking of drawers from either side or front, accommodating various drawer positions without requiring uncomfortable hand placements, ensuring efficient and accessible operation.

Implementation Method 1

a lever (12) oscillating about an axis (19) perpendicular to the oscillating plane of the lever

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectOscillation: Harmonic Oscillator

Implementation Method 2

said lever and said support body are realised in a single piece exhibiting at least an elastically yielding portion suitable for enabling oscillation of the lever

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectElasticity: Elasticity

Data Source

PatentEP2557964B1A hooking device for connecting a drawer to a longitudinal guide
Publication Date: 2014.06.04 ARTURO SALICE SPA
  • EP2557964B1 patent drawingFigure 1~2
  • EP2557964B1 patent drawingFigure 3~4
  • EP2557964B1 patent drawingFigure 5

AI summary

The hooking device (1) for connecting drawer (3) to a longitudinal guide (3) comprises a support body (4) fixable to a front (5) and/or a bottom (6) of the drawer (2) and provided with an oscillating command lever (12) for a hooking organ (13) of the support body (4) to the guide (3), the hooking organ (13) being mobile between a hooking position and an unhooking position, the lever (12) exhibiting a first surface zone (16) and respectively a second surface zone (17) for manual gripping configured in such a way as to be selectively subjectable to a first manual activating force (F1) or respectively to a second manual activating force (F2) in reciprocally transversal directions and destined to generate an oscillation torque of the said command lever (12) in a same direction in order to bring the hooking organ (13) into the unhooking position.