GB2558635A

GB2558635A - Lapped closure system

Info

Publication number: GB2558635A
Application number: GB1700572.9A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Douglas Anthony
Original assignee: Andoras Ltd
Current assignee: Andoras Ltd
Priority date: 2017-01-12
Filing date: 2017-01-12
Publication date: 2018-07-18
Also published as: GB201700572D0

Abstract

Disclosed is a closure system 10 suitable for use with lap joint furniture; the closure system comprising a frame 2, and a closure member 4. The frame defines an opening for receiving the closure member. The opening comprises a rebated perimeter 6, and the closure member comprises a cooperating rebated edge 8 such that the frame and the closure member interact when in a closed position. The rebate may extend about the entire perimeter of the frame and/or closure member. The closure member may comprise a door or a drawer front, either of which may be curved. Preferably the closure member comprises two doors that have contiguous sides when in a closed position. The closure member may be mounted on the frame by a hinge. The frame may be integral to an enclosure, or may be an independent component attachable to a variety of enclosures. Also claimed is a cabinet or in frame kitchen cabinet comprising the closure system as set out above.

Description

(54) Title of the Invention: Lapped closure system

Abstract Title: Closure system comprising a rebated frame and rebated closure member (57) Disclosed is a closure system 10 suitable for use with lap joint furniture; the closure system comprising a frame 2, and a closure member 4. The frame defines an opening for receiving the closure member. The opening comprises a rebated perimeter 6, and the closure member comprises a cooperating rebated edge 8 such that the frame and the closure member interact when in a closed position. The rebate may extend about the entire perimeter of the frame and/or closure member. The closure member may comprise a door or a drawer front, either of which may be curved. Preferably the closure member comprises two doors that have contiguous sides when in a closed position. The closure member may be mounted on the frame by a hinge. The frame may be integral to an enclosure, or may be an independent component attachable to a variety of enclosures. Also claimed is a cabinet or in frame kitchen cabinet comprising the closure system as set out above.

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Lapped Closure System

Field of the invention

This invention relates to a lapped closure system for use as a means of substantially sealing an enclosure, in particular, this system may be used as a door or drawer type closure on a cabinet, in particular an in frame type kitchen cabinet.

Background of the invention

Cabinets can be used to store a variety of goods. The goods which they contain can often dictate the features of the cabinet (such as a door or drawer closing mechanism for different kitchen utensils, size of cabinet for different goods, etc.).

The location of the cabinet within a room can also dictate the features of a cabinet (such as; the closure systems depending on the available space or the cabinet material depending on the amount of wear a system in a certain location may be likely to experience).

For centuries, all cabinet furniture was made using the “in frame” method, wherein a door of a cabinet is perfectly fitted within a frame forming a front part of a wooden carcass. Custom fitted kitchen cabinets using traditional in frame cabinetry methods became popular in the early 20^th century. However, advances in high-pressure laminate technology in more recent years enabled manufacturers to greatly cut costs by introducing frameless kitchens, wherein a kitchen cabinet door is fitted to the outside of the carcass of a kitchen cabinet. Such frameless kitchen cabinets quickly became very popular due to their affordability. With the frameless design, the carcass, including the sides, back, top and bottom, of a cabinet, which is normally hidden from view, can be formed from a relatively cheap material, such as

MDF (medium density fibreboard), typically laminated with a plastic outer covering, while the door can be made from a more expensive but more aesthetically pleasing material, such as solid wood or a higher quality laminate panel with a more aesthetically pleasing finish than the carcass.

However, there is still a strong demand for in frame kitchen cabinets, particularly in high end bespoke fitted kitchens, due to the classic appearance of such designs. While in frame kitchens have mostly been reserved for traditional kitchen designs, modern styles are now also opting to use the in frame design because of its durability and upmarket appearance, particularly where solid wood is used for the doors and front frame within which the door is mounted. With the in frame design, the front frame forms an integral part of the kitchen appearance. This allows for a variety of different styles to be fitted to a standard carcass by fitting different front frames and doors to a standard carcass. In a typical in frame kitchen cabinet, a solid wood front frame is attached to the carcass of the cabinet, within which frame the cabinet door is mounted.

However, in frame cabinets can be susceptible to ingress of dust and pests due to their proximity to the ground and the nature of their contents (food storage cabinets may attract various foraging pests). Traditional cabinets do not encompass a complex geometric fit feature or other sealing mechanism which stops dust or pests from accessing the inside of the cabinet. If a cabinet is incorrectly fitted, the door and the frame may not be exactly aligned and whilst this may not affect the obvious opening and closing functions of the cabinet, it may provide a means of access to foraging pests when the door of the cabinet is in the closed position.

Summary of the invention

According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided a lapped closure system comprising; a frame and a closure member, the frame defining an opening for receiving the closure member; wherein the opening comprises a rebated perimeter and the closure member comprises a cooperating rebated edge such that the frame and the closure member interact when the lapped closure system is in the closed position.

Preferably, the closure member comprises a door.

Preferably, the door is curved.

Preferably, the closure member comprises a drawer front.

Preferably, the drawer front is curved.

Preferably, the closure member comprises two doors.

Preferably, the closure member comprises two doors with one side of a first door 5 being contiguous with one side of a second door when the invention is in the closed position.

Preferably, the contiguous side of the first door is rebated.

Preferably, the contiguous side of the second door is reverse rebated.

Preferably, the entire perimeter of the closure member is rebated.

Preferably, the entire perimeter of the opening on the frame is rebated.

Preferably, the closure member is hingedly mounted on the frame.

Preferably, the frame is an integral component of an enclosure.

Preferably, the frame is an independent component which is attachable to a variety of enclosure types.

According to a second aspect of the present invention there is provided a cabinet comprising a lapped closure system according to the first aspect of the invention.

According to a further aspect of the present invention there is provided an in frame kitchen cabinet comprising a carcass having opposed side walls, a bottom wall, a top wall and a back wall and an open front, and a front frame to be affixed to the open front of the carcass supporting at least one door therein, said front frame and at least one door comprising a lapped closure system according to the first aspect of the invention.

Brief description of the drawings

An embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to the 10 accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 illustrates a perspective view of a lapped closure system, in the open and closed positions, according to an embodiment of the present invention;

Figure 2 illustrates a cross section of the system of Figure 1 and an enlarged view of the area of interaction between the rebated frame and the rebated closure member;

Figure 3 illustrates a perspective view of an enlarged section of the rebated frame;

Figure 4 illustrates a perspective view of an enlarged section of the rebated closure member;

Figure 5 illustrates a perspective view of two lapped closure systems (door and 20 drawer), in the open and closed positions;

Figure 6 illustrates a perspective view of the lapped closure system, in the open and closed positions, wherein the lapped closure system comprises a rebated two door closure member; and

Figure 7 illustrates a perspective view of the lapped closure system, in the open and closed positions, wherein the lapped closure system comprises a rebated curved door closure member.

Detailed description of the drawings

Referring now to the accompanying drawings, there is illustrated a lapped closure system, generally indicated as 10, for use as a means of substantially sealing an enclosure such as a kitchen cabinet. The lapped closure system (10) may comprise a rebated closure member (4) (such as a door or a drawer) which is used in conjunction with a rebated frame (2) in order to provide a means of substantially sealing an enclosure. The rebated frame (2) and the closure member (4) may be used, in particular, as part of a cabinet unit comprising at least one shelf with at least door (14) or at least one slot with at least one drawer (12), or any combination of these options.

Figures 2 and 3 illustrate the areas of interaction between the rebated frame (2) and the rebated closure member (4). Both the rebate (6) on the frame (2) and the rebate (8) on the closure member (8) are shown as a step-shaped recess along the perimeter of the frame (2) and closure member (4), respectively, however it will be appreciated that any other shape of recess on either the frame (2) or the closure member (4) with a corresponding recess on the frame (2) or closure member (4) would also be suitable for use in this application.

The rebate (6) on the frame (2) or the rebate (8) on the closure member (4) may be complete about the entire perimeter of the frame (2) or closure member (4) or it may be partially interrupted in sections. The rebate (8) on the closure member (4) is on an interior surface (Z2) of the closure member (4) (the interior surface (Z2) being the surface which faces inwards toward the enclosure), this rebate (8) may also be referred to as a rebated edge. The rebate (6) on the frame (2) is on an exterior surface (X1) of the frame (2) (the exterior surface (X1) being the surface which faces outwards, away from the enclosure).

As illustrated in Figure 5; the lapped closure system (10) may comprise a door (14) or a drawer (12) or any other suitable closure member (4) suitable for sealing an enclosure. The lapped closure system (10) may also comprise a combination of any of these closure members (4).

As illustrated in Figure 6, the lapped closure system (10) may also comprise double doors (16, 18), rather than a single door (14), as a rebated closure member (4). In order to facilitate a rebated frame (2) with double rebated doors (16, 18), a first door (16) will have a standard rebate (8) along all four sides of the interior surface (Z2) as per Figures 1, 2, 4 and 5, however, a second door (18) will have a standard rebate (8) along only three sides (A, B, C) of the interior surface (Z2). These three sides (A, B, C) are the sides which interact directly with the frame (2). The fourth side (D) of the second door (18), which is the side which interacts directly with the first door (16), will comprise a reverse rebate (20). The reverse rebate (20) is a rebate on an exterior surface (X2) (rather than the interior surface (X1)) of the second door (18). The reverse rebate (20) of the fourth side (D) of the second door (18) therefore mirrors the rebate (6) of the frame (2) thereby allowing the first door (16) to form a close- fit with the second door (18) as if it were in contact with the rebate (6) of the frame (2), when the doors (16, 18) are in the closed position.

The lapped closure system (10) may lie in the same plane as the frame (2) as shown in Figure 1,2,5 and 6 or as illustrated in Figure 7, the lapped closure system (10) may comprise a curved (or other non flat) surface (22). If the rebated closure member (4) is at least partially curved, the rebated frame (2) must also comprise at least one curved element in order to maintain the integrity of the seal between the rebated closure member (4) and the rebated frame (2). The curved frame (2) will comprises a partial or complete rebated perimeter (6) which will interact with the partial or complete rebated perimeter (8) of the curved closure member (4).

Claims

1. A lapped closure system comprising; a frame and a closure member, the 5 frame defining an opening for receiving the closure member; wherein the opening comprises a rebated perimeter and the closure member comprises a cooperating rebated edge such that the frame and the closure member interact when the lapped closure system is in the closed position.

10

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the closure member comprises a door.

3. The system of claim 2 wherein the door is curved.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein the closure member comprises a drawer front. 15

5. The system of claim 4 wherein the drawer front is curved.

6. The system of any of the preceding claims 1 to 3 wherein the closure member comprises two doors.

7. The system of claim 6 wherein one side of a first door is contiguous with one side of a second door, when the first and second doors are in their closed position.

25

8. The system of any of claims 6 or 7 wherein the contiguous side of the second door comprises a reverse rebate.

9. The system of any preceding claim wherein the rebate extends about the entire perimeter of the closure member.

10. The system of any preceding claim wherein the rebate extends about the entire perimeter of the opening on the frame.

11. The system of any preceding claim wherein the closure member is hingedly mounted on the frame.

5

12. The system of any claim 1 to 11 wherein the frame is an integral component of an enclosure.

13. The system of any claim 1 to 11 wherein the frame is an independent component which is attachable to a variety of enclosures.

14. A cabinet comprising a lapped closure system as claimed in any preceding claims.

15. An in frame kitchen cabinet comprising a carcass having opposed side walls,

15 a bottom wall, a top wall and a back wall and an open front, and a front frame to be affixed to the open front of the carcass supporting at least one door therein, said front frame and at least one door comprising a lapped closure system as claimed in any preceding claim.

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Application No: Claims searched:

GB 1700572.9 1-15