Tab Products Company, Inc.

Kent Thomas

Daniel R Bullis, Jr

Thomas J Bottelson

Richard Lahti

Lloyd Lechner

A carriage lock selectively enables and prevents a mobile carriage from moving along rails embedded in a building floor. The mobile carriage includes a shaft on which are rotatably mounted a driver sprocket, a hub, and a handwheel. The hub mates with the driver sprocket. A chain and sprocket mechanism connects the driver sprocket with the carriage wheels such that rotation of the handwheel and hub causes the carriage to move along the rails. A locking knob is loosely captured between the hub and handwheel for being manually rotated through a predetermined angle relative to the hub and handwheel. A pin is translatable within the hub parallel to the shaft longitudinal axis. The pin has a head that is received within a selected one of two angularly spaced depressions in a cam formed on the locking knob. The depressions are also spaced apart in the direction of the shaft longitudinal axis. By rotating the locking knob through the predetermined angle to first and second positions, the cam translates the pin in the hub between respective first and second positions. In the first position, the pin engages a lock plate held stationarily to the shaft to thereby prevent rotation of the hub and handwheel and thus prevent carriage movement. Rotating the locking knob to the second position thereof translates the pin to disengage from the lock plate and thereby enables the hub and handwheel to be rotated to move the carriage.

Carriage lock for a mobile storage system with rotatable actuator knob

A mobile carriage is movable along rails by manual rotation of a handwheel. The mobile carriage comprises a visual indicator that instantly informs a person of the locked or unlocked status of the mobile carriage. The visual indicator comprises at least one ridge on the handwheel and another ridge on a locking knob. The locking knob is loosely captured between the handwheel and a hub for selective rotation relative thereto between first and second end positions. The locking knob has a cam that slides a pin within the hub between first and second positions whereat the pin disengages and engages a stationary lock plate. When the locking knob is manually rotated to the first end position thereof, the pin disengages from the lock plate to enable handwheel rotation and carriage movement. Manually rotating the locking knob to the second end position thereof causes the pin to engage the lock plate and prevent handwheel rotation and carriage movement. The ridges on the handwheel and locking knob are radially aligned when the locking knob is rotated to its first end position, indicating that the carriage is unlocked. The ridges on the handwheel and locking knob are radially misaligned when the locking knob is rotated to its second end position, indicating that the carriage is locked against movement. Closely spaced end surfaces on the two ridges are coated with a bright material to provide enhanced indication when the ridges are misaligned that the mobile carriage is locked against movement.

Visual indicator with aligning ridges for indicating the status of a

A document handle comprises a pair of elongated members. The outer ends of the document handle are provided with webs having hooked openings for engaging the binder posts of a bound multi-page document. The first member is formed as a channel adapted to slidingly receive the second member. The second member is formed with latches that engage openings in the first member to lock the two members together in positions at which the webbed openings engage the binder posts. Several sets of openings can be formed in the first member, so that the same document handle can be used with a variety of standard size papers.

Adjustable document handle

A cartridge for binding multi-page documents comprises a center member and a pair of side members pivotally connected to the center member. In the closed operative configuration, the side and center members cooperate to form a U-shaped channel for receiving the documents. Pins extending between and supported by the side members enter aligned holes in the documents for suspending them. The side members are provided with a lock for releasably locking the cartridge in the closed configuration. The lock comprises a first tab on one side member having an opening therein and a second tab on the other side member having a protrusion. The two tabs cooperate such that the second tab protrusion releaseably engages the first tab opening when the cartridge is in the closed configuration. The cartridge may be made with a T-shaped bar or a center hook suspension system. A frictional coupling retains one side member to the center member in the closed configuration even though the second side member remains in the open configuration and the tab lock is inoperative.

Document cartridge

A filing cabinet includes a safety interlock that prevents more than one drawer from being opened at a time. The safety interlock comprises a column of endwise abutting catches mounted to the cabinet wall for vertical reciprocation thereon. The ends of the catches are formed with tabs. The tabs of adjacent catches cooperate to define gaps of predetermined spacing. Actuator means on each cabinet drawer are aligned with the catch gaps. When a selected drawer is opened, the actuator means thereon enters the associated gap and displaces upwardly any higher catches. Upward displacement causes the gaps between higher adjacent catches to be displaced into the paths of the actuator means of any higher drawers, thereby preventing any higher drawers from being opened. The retainer of an open drawer blocks upward displacement of any lower catches, thereby preventing lower drawers from being opened. A slide is reciprocably mounted on each retainer. The slide remains in the gap to maintain catch upward displacement when the drawer is opened such that the retainer passes completely through the gap. The catches are severable approximately in line with the top of each drawer to enable easy field conversion of cabinet drawers without affecting interlock components associated with non-converted drawers.

Safety interlock

A universal center hook is designed to be used with several office accessories for handling data media. The universal center hook comprises an elongated frame to which are pivotally joined a pair of side members. A selected accessory is captured between the frame and a side member when the side member is pivoted to a closed operative configuration wherein it lies parallel to and close to the frame. Hollow cylinders projecting from the frame sides align with and locate the accessories. The hollow cylinders cooperate with means in the side members to releasably lock the side member to the frame.

Growing community of inventors

Mayville, WI, United States of America

Kent Thomas