Hanger bracket lock

Claim 2

In a furniture system including a furniture unit releasably mounted on a support by means of hooks projecting from said furniture unit and hooking into apertures in said support, and including a biased lock movably mounted on said furniture unit and being biased towards engagement with another aperture in said support whereby said hooks cannot be removed from said apertures when said lock is in its locked position and in engagement with said other aperture, the improvement comprising: detent means on said lock and detent engaging means on said furniture unit positioned to engage said detent means when said lock is fully removed from said aperture to its unlocking position, whereby said lock can be moved to said unlocked position and will be held in said unlocked position out of engagement with said other aperture without requiring a user to manually hold said lock in said unlocked position.

Claim 3

The furniture system of claim 1 in which said lock includes automatic release means for moving said detent means out of engagement with said detent engaging means, and said support includes a release engaging means positioned to engage and activate said automatic release means when said furniture unit is located with said hooks hooked into said apertures whereby said lock will automatically move into engagement with said other aperture and lock said furniture unit in place on said support.

Claim 4

The furniture system of claim 2 in which said automatic release means and said release engaging means are positioned such that when said detent is engaged by said detent engaging means, and when said furniture unit is positioned with said hooks located in said apertures but not yet hooked downwardly into said apertures, said automatic release means is aligned with said release engaging means, and such that when said furniture unit is moved so that said hooks do hook downwardly into said apertures, said release engaging means engages and activates said automatic release means to disengage said detent means and cause said lock to be biased into engagement with said other aperture.

Claim 5

The furniture system of claim 3 in which said detent means and said detent engaging means are adapted so that there is play in the engagement thereof, whereby when said furniture unit is in position with said hooks hooked down into said apertures in said support, said lock can be moved out of said other aperture completely and into a position where it is biased against the surface of said support in the vicinity of and outside of said other aperture and where said detent means and said detent engaging means are at the same time loosely engaged.

Claim 6

The furniture system of claim 4 in which said detent means comprises a notch in said lock, said furniture unit including a wall having a lock opening through which said lock projects, said detent engaging means comprising a portion of said wall adjacent said opening which engages said notch when said lock is moved so that said notch fits over said portion of said wall.

Claim 7

The furniture system of claim 5 in which said notch is sufficiently deep from top to bottom and sufficiently wide from front to back to facilitate said play whereby at least a portion of said lock will project into said other aperture when the front edge of said notch in a direction away from said support is engaging said wall portion, yet whereby said lock can be shifted forwardly such that it is entirely without said other aperture and such that the end of said lock engages said support in the vicinity of said other aperture while said detent notch is still positioned over and loosely engaged with said wall portion adjacent said lock opening.

Claim 8

The furniture system of claim 6 in which said automatic release means on said lock comprises said lock having sufficient length that when it is in its unlocked, detent engaged position, at least an end portion thereof projects into said other aperture, said release engaging means comprising an edge of said other aperture which engages said end projecting portion of said lock and acts against it to move said lock as said hooks are hooked into said apertures whereby said detent disengages said detent engaging means.

Claim 9

The furniture system of claim 7 in which said bias means biases said lock not only rearwardly towards engagement with said other aperture, but also slightly downwardly such that said detent is biased towards engagement with said detent engaging means.

Claim 10

The furniture system of claim 8 in which said support comprises slotted standards wherein regularly spaced slots serve as apertures to receive said hooks or alternatively as apertures to receive said lock, depending on the relative positioning of said furniture unit on said support.

Claim 11

The furniture system of claim 6 in which said bias means biases said lock not only rearwardly towards engagement with said other aperture, but also slightly downwardly such that said detent is biased towards engagement with said detent engaging means.

Claim 12

The furniture system of claim 5 in which said bias means biases said lock not only rearwardly towards engagement with said other aperture, but also slightly downwardly such that said detent is biased towards engagement with said detent engaging means.

Claim 13

The furniture system of claim 3 in which said automatic release means on said lock comprises said lock having sufficient length that when it is in its unlocked, detent engaged position, at least an end portion thereof projects into said other aperture, said release engaging means comprising an edge of said other aperture which engages said end projecting portion of said lock and acts against it to move said lock as said hooks are hooked into said apertures whereby said detent disengages said detent engaging means.

Claim 14

The furniture system of claim 2 in which said automatic release means on said lock comprises said lock having sufficient length that when it is in its unlocked, detent engaged position, at least an end portion thereof projects into said other aperture, said release engaging means comprising an edge of said other aperture which engages said end projecting portion of said lock and acts against it to move said lock as said hooks are hooked into said apertures whereby said detent disengages said detent engaging means.

Claim 15

In a furniture system including a furniture unit releasably mounted on a support by means of hooks projecting from said furniture unit and hooking into apertures in said support, and including a biased lock movably mounted on said furniture unit and being biased towards engagement with another aperture in said support whereby said hooks cannot be removed from said apertures when said lock is in its locked position and in engagement with said other aperture, the improvement comprising: said furniture unit including a cavity having a back wall which is adjacent said support; said lock being located within said cavity; a lock opening in said back wall through which said lock projects, said lock being biased to movement through said opening by biasing means located within said cavity; said lock including a detent notch in the bottom edge thereof, said detent notch having a width from the front edge thereof to the back edge thereof and a height and a distance from the end of said lock such that at least a portion of said lock will project into said other aperture when the front edge of said notch, in a direction away from said support, is engaging said wall portion, yet whereby said lock can be shifted forwardly such that it is entirely without said other aperture and such that the end of said lock engages said support in the vicinity of said other aperture while said detent notch is still positioned over and loosely engaged with said wall portion adjacent said lock opening.

Claim 16

In a furniture system including a furniture unit releasably mounted on a support by means of hooks projecting from said furniture unit and hooking into apertures in said support, and including a biased lock movably mounted on said furniture unit and being biased towards engagement with another aperture in said support whereby said hooks cannot be removed from said apertures when said lock is in its locked position and in engagement with said other aperture, the improvement comprising: said furniture unit including a cavity having a back wall which is adjacent said support; said lock being located within said cavity; a lock opening in said back wall through which said lock projects, said lock being biased to movement through said opening by biasing means located within said cavity; said lock including a detent notch in the bottom edge thereof, said detent notch having a width from the front edge thereof to the back edge thereof and a height and a distance from the end of said lock such that at least a portion of said lock will project into said other aperture when the front edge of said notch, in a direction away from said support, is engaging said wall portion, yet whereby said lock can be shifted forwardly such that it is entirely without said other aperture and such that the end of said lock engages said support in the vicinity of said other aperture while said detent notch is still positioned over and loosely engaged with said wall portion adjacent said lock opening.

Claim 17

The furniture system of claim 14 wherein that portion of said lock which is located within said other aperture when said lock is in its locking position is approximately the same in width from top to bottom as the height of said other aperture from top to bottom whereby said furniture unit is positively locked in place; said lock including an end projecting rearwardly therefrom which is smaller than the adjacent body of said lock whereby said projecting end can be easily inserted into said other aperture initially during the initial positioning of said furniture unit on said support means.

Claim 18

The furniture system of claim 15 in which said bias means biases said lock not only rearwardly towards engagement with said other aperture, but also slightly downwardly such that said detent is biased towards engagement with said detent engaging means.

Claim 19

The furniture system of claim 16 in which said bias means is secured at one end to the top of said lock and secured at the other end of said back wall of said furniture unit and is inclined downwardly in a rearward direction towards said support whereby said lock is biased not only rearwardly towards said support, but also slightly downwardly to thereby bias said notch towards engagement with said notch engaging wall portion of said back wall.

Claim 20

The furniture system of claim 17 in which said lock includes a round hole therein through which one's finger can be inserted, said round hole facilitating pivotal movement of said lock about said finger whereby as one draws said lock out of said other aperture, it tends to rotate about one's finger such that said detent notch moves downwardly over said detent engaging wall portion adjacent said lock opening.

Claim 21

The furniture system of claim 18 in which said hooks include leading rear edges which are inclined downwardly as one proceeds rearwardly towards said support whereby said furniture unit can be moved up and down slightly during initial mounting without completely disengaging said hooks from said aperture.

Claim 22

The furniture system of claim 19 in which said lock includes a tab on the front thereof away from said support and said cavity includes a guide means positioned such that said tab extends into said guide means whereby movement of said lock is guided thereby.

Claim 23

The furniture system of claim 20 in which said furniture unit includes an access opening accessible from the exterior thereof and opening into the interior of said cavity whereby one can reach through said access opening and grasp said lock.

Claim 24

The furniture system of claim 16 in which said hooks include leading rear edges which are inclined downwardly as one proceeds rearwardly towards said support whereby said furniture unit can be moved up and down slightly during initial mounting without completely disengaging said hooks from said apertures.

Claim 25

The furniture system of claim 14 in which said bias means is secured at one end to the top of said lock and secured at the other end of said back wall of said furniture unit and is inclined downwardly in a rearward direction towards said support whereby said lock is biased not only rearwardly towards said support, but also slightly downwardly to thereby bias said notch towards engagement with said notch engaging wall portion of said back wall.

Claim 26

The furniture system of claim 23 in which said lock includes a round hole therein through which one's finger can be inserted, said round hold facilitating pivotal movement of said lock about said finger whereby as one draws said lock out of said other aperture, it tends to rotate about one's finger such that said detent notch moves downwardly over said detent engaging wall portion adjacent said lock opening.

Claim 27

The furniture system of claim 14 in which said furniture unit includes an access opening accessible from the exterior thereof and opening into the interior of said cavity whereby one can reach through said access opening and grasp said lock.