Knockdown storage rack with wedge connectors

Abstract

A wedge connector for securing the horizontal cross beam of a storage rack to the hollow upright posts of the system. Two ear-supporting members extend laterally from an elongated shank, each of which members carries an upwardly extending wedging ear. The wedge connector has a shape and carefully controlled dimensions that make it possible to insert the elongated shank and lower wedging ear into the upper slot of a pair of elongated slots in the upright post of the storage rack. The elongated shank is then swung down within the interior of the hollow post into a position where the lower wedging ear can be moved back out of the lower elongated slot of the pair of slots, so that the wedge connector can then drop directly down into its operative position. In this position portions of the wall of the upright post are embraced by a downwardly opening rectangular notch at the bottom edge of each laterally extending ear-supporting member. The dimensions of the upper wedging ear of the wedge connector are controlled so that the upper ear cannot be inserted in the upper elongated slot in the upright post. The features described produce the advantage of being able to insert the wedge connector from outside a hollow, completely enclosed tubular upright post, while at the same time retaining the advantage of locating the elongated shank on the inside of the post when the connector has been placed in its final operative position.