Jewelry storage cabinet

Patent Abstract
The jewelry storage cabinet includes a housing, which defines an open interior region therein. Upper and lower shelves are mounted within the open interior region to divide the open interior region into an upper chamber, a central chamber and a lower chamber. The upper chamber is defined between the upper shelf and an upper wall of the housing. The central chamber is defined between the upper and lower shelves, and slidably receives a plurality of sliding vertical panels therein. The lower chamber is defined between the lower shelf and a lower wall of the housing, and slidably receives a plurality of drawers. The upper wall may be pivotally secured to an upper end of a rear wall of the housing, providing the user with selective access to the upper chamber. A plurality of hooks are mounted to the panels for hanging articles of jewelry.

2. The jewelry storage cabinet as recited in claim 1, further comprising at least one door pivotally mounted to said housing, said at least one door selectively covering the central chamber.

3. The jewelry storage cabinet as recited in claim 1, wherein said at least one jewelry support comprises a plurality of hooks.

4. The jewelry storage cabinet as recited in claim 3, wherein said plurality of hooks are staggered so that adjacent hooks are spaced apart vertically and horizontally with respect to one another.

5. The jewelry storage cabinet as recited in claim 1, wherein said housing comprises a rear wall, an upper wall, a lower wall, and opposing sidewalls, the upper wall being pivotally attached to the rear wall.

6. The jewelry storage cabinet as recited in claim 1, wherein said at least one drawer comprises a plurality of drawers, said plurality of drawers being vertically stacked below the lower shelf.

7. The jewelry storage cabinet as recited in claim 1, further comprising a padded layer disposed within said at least one drawer.

8. The jewelry storage cabinet as recited in claim 1, wherein said upper shelf has a track mounted thereon and said lower shelf has a track mounted thereon, said at least one panel being slidably mounted in the tracks.

9. The jewelry storage cabinet as recited in claim 8, further comprising upper and lower telescoping slides mounted to said at least sliding panel, the telescoping slides being mounted in the tracks.

10. The jewelry storage cabinet as recited in claim 1, further comprising extension slides mounted to said at least one drawer and said housing, said at least one drawer being slidably mounted on the extension slide.

11. A jewelry storage cabinet, comprising: a housing having an upper wall, a lower wall, a rear wall and a pair of opposing sidewalls, the housing defining an open interior region; an upper shelf mounted within the open interior region, the upper shelf being positioned adjacent and spaced apart from the upper wall to define an upper storage chamber therebetween; a lower shelf mounted within the open interior region, the lower shelf and the upper shelf defining a central chamber therebetween, the lower shelf and the lower wall defining a lower chamber therebetween; a plurality of sliding panels disposed in the central chamber, the panels being vertically oriented and extending between the upper and lower shelves; means for releasably supporting jewelry on the vertically oriented sliding panels; and a plurality of drawers slidably mounted within the lower chamber, the drawers being vertically stacked within the lower chamber.

12. The jewelry storage cabinet as recited in claim 11, further comprising at least one door pivotally mounted to said housing, the door selectively covering the central chamber.

13. The jewelry storage cabinet as recited in claim 11, wherein said means for releasably supporting jewelry comprises a plurality of hooks mounted on the panels.

14. The jewelry storage cabinet as recited in claim 13, wherein said hooks are staggered horizontally and vertically on each side of each said panel.

15. The jewelry storage cabinet as recited in claim 11, wherein said hooks are mounted to first and second laterally opposed surfaces of each of said sliding panels.

16. The jewelry storage cabinet as recited in claim 11, wherein said upper wall is pivotally joined to an upper end of said rear wall.

17. The jewelry storage cabinet as recited in claim 11, further comprising a plurality of padded layers disposed within said drawers.

18. The jewelry storage cabinet as recited in claim 11, further comprising a plurality of tracks mounted on the lower surface of said upper shelf and the upper surface of said lower shelf, said panels being slidably mounted in the tracks.

19. The jewelry storage cabinet as recited in claim 18, further comprising an upper telescoping slide mounted to the upper edge of each said sliding panel and a lower telescoping slide mounted to the lower edge of each said sliding panel, the telescoping slides being mounted in said tracks.

20. The jewelry storage cabinet as recited in claim 19, further comprising a plurality of extension slides slidably mounting said drawers to said housing.

Patent Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention

[0002] The present invention relates to furniture and storage cabinets, and particularly to a jewelry storage cabinet for storing jewelry.

[0003] 2. Description of the Related Art

[0004] Jewelry is often formed from expensive materials, such as gold and precious gemstones, and may be easily damaged, so that jewelry requires safe and secure storage. Jewelry boxes, which are typically simple storage boxes having an inner compartment and a hinged lid, are commonly utilized for the storage of jewelry therein. For jewelry having chains, such as necklaces, or hooks, such as earrings, such storage boxes are inefficient in that the separate articles of jewelry can easily become entangled with one another, thus making it difficult to separate the jewelry and further potentially damaging the expensive and delicate jewelry materials.

[0005] Such lidded jewelry boxes do not provide a means for displaying the jewelry. In addition to safely storing the jewelry, many users also wish to display their expensive and decorative jewelry items. Jewelry display racks, as are often found in jewelry stores, may be utilized for displaying jewelry. However, they are not effective for the safe and secure storage of the jewelry itself. The jewelry must be removed from the display rack and stored in a separate jewelry box.

[0006] Further, users often wish to store jewelry-related items, such as containers of jewelry cleaner, in close proximity to the jewelry. Typical jewelry boxes do not have adequate storage space for containing both the jewelry and the jewelry-related items.

[0007] Thus, a jewelry storage cabinet solving the aforementioned problems is desired.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0008] The jewelry storage cabinet includes a housing, which defines an open interior region therein. The housing includes an upper wall, a lower wall, a rear wall and a pair of sidewalls. A pair of doors are preferably mounted to a front face of the housing, providing the user with selective access to a central chamber of the open interior region. Upper and lower shelves are mounted within the open interior region to divide the open interior region into an upper chamber, the central chamber and a lower chamber. The upper chamber is defined between the upper shelf and the upper wall of the housing. The central chamber is defined between the upper and lower shelves, and slidably receives at least one, and preferably a plurality of vertically mounted panels therein. The lower chamber is defined between the lower shelf and a lower wall of the housing, and slidably receives at least one, and preferably a plurality of drawers.

[0009] Each vertical panel has a substantially planar contour, an upper edge, and a lower edge. Each upper edge is slidably mounted to a lower surface of the upper shelf, and each lower edge is slidably mounted to an upper surface of the lower shelf. Each sliding panel has a plurality of hooks mounted thereto hanging articles of jewelry.

[0010] The plurality of drawers are vertically stacked within the lower chamber, one on top of the other, and each is slidably mounted to the pair of sidewalls. Each of the drawers may receive a padded layer for the safe and secure mounting of jewelry thereon. Additionally, the upper wall may be pivotally secured to an upper end of the rear wall of the housing, providing the user with selective access to the upper chamber.

[0011] These and other features of the present invention will become readily apparent upon further review of the following specification and drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0012] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a jewelry storage cabinet according to the present invention in a first partially open configuration.

[0013] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a jewelry storage cabinet according to the present invention in a second partially open configuration.

[0014] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a jewelry storage cabinet according to the present invention in a third partially open configuration.

[0015] Similar reference characters denote corresponding features consistently throughout the attached drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

[0016] The present invention is directed towards a jewelry storage cabinet 10. As shown in FIGS. 1-3, the jewelry storage cabinet 10 includes a main housing having an upper wall 12, a lower wall 14, a rear wall 15 and a pair of sidewalls 16, 18. The housing defines an open interior region for receiving at least one sliding vertically mounted panel 26 and at least one drawer 20, as will be described in detail below. It should be understood that jewelry storage cabinet 10 may have any suitable size and may be formed from any suitable materials. In the preferred embodiment, the housing, panels 26, and drawers 20 are formed from wood, although any suitable structurally strong material may be utilized. Lower wall 14 is adapted for mounting on any suitable support surface, such as a floor, and may have a plurality of feet 11 mounted thereon for supporting the lower wall 14 above the support surface (as best shown in FIG. 3).

[0017] An upper horizontal shelf 34 is mounted within the open interior region of the housing and is attached to opposing sidewalls 16, 18 and the rear wall 15. The upper horizontal shelf 34 is mounted adjacent the upper end of the housing and is spaced apart from the upper wall 12 to form an upper chamber, or storage space, therebetween. Similarly, a lower horizontal shelf 50 is received within the open interior region of the housing, and is mounted to the sidewalls 16, 18 and the rear wall 15. However, the lower horizontal shelf 50 is mounted to a substantially central region of the housing, with the upper shelf 34 and the lower shelf 50 defining the upper chamber, a central chamber and a lower chamber in the housing.

[0018] As best shown in FIG. 2, upper wall 12 is preferably pivotally mounted, along a rear edge thereof, to the upper end of rear wall 15. In the preferred embodiment, a hinge 35, such as a piano hinge, is secured to the upper wall 12 and the rear wall 15, though any suitable means for pivotal attachment may be utilized. Jewelry or other articles 48 may be placed on the upper surface of upper shelf 28, as shown, and the user may access the storage space through either the front of the housing or by selectively rotating the upper wall 12 into an open position, as shown.

[0019] A central chamber is defined between the upper shelf 28 and the lower shelf 50. At least one sliding vertical panel 26 is mounted within the central chamber. Preferably, a plurality of sliding vertical panels 26 are provided. First and second doors 22, 24 may be pivotally mounted to sidewalls 18, 16 for selectively and releasably covering the central chamber. First and second doors 22, 24 may be pivotally mounted to the housing by hinges 33 or by any other suitable means for pivotal attachment. First and second doors 22, 24 may have knobs 32 secured thereto, providing the user with a surface to grasp during opening and closing of the doors 22, 24.

[0020] As best shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, tracks 34 or guides are mounted on the lower surface of upper shelf 28, and on the upper surface of lower shelf 50. One pair of upper and lower tracks 34 is provided for each sliding panel 26, so that jewelry support panels 26 may be slidably mounted therebetween, with each being oriented in a substantially vertical direction. In the preferred embodiment, each sliding panel 26 has a substantially rectangular, planar contour, as shown.

[0021] Preferably, each panel 26 has a pair of telescoping slides 36 (as best shown in FIG. 3) mounted to an upper edge and a lower edge thereof, respectively. Telescoping slides 36 are received within the tracks 34, and each preferably includes a stopping member, so that panels 26 may be easily slid into and out of the central chamber, but cannot be accidentally removed from the cabinet 10.

[0022] Additionally, a plurality of hooks 46 are mounted to front and rear faces of each panel 26, as best shown in FIG. 3. It should be understood that any hanger or support for releasably receiving jewelry may be used in place of hooks 46. Hooks 46 are preferably arrayed in a staggered configuration, providing the user with space between each hook 46 to grasp a particular article of jewelry 44. Hooks may support necklaces, chains, bracelets, and other jewelry items capable of being suspended from a vertical support.

[0023] A lower chamber is defined between the lower shelf 50 and the lower wall 14. The lower chamber receives at least one drawer 20. In the preferred embodiment, a plurality of drawers 20 is provided, with each drawer 20 being stacked upon the other in a vertical arrangement. Drawers 20 may have differing heights, as illustrated. Each drawer 20 is slidably mounted to opposing sidewalls 16, 18 by extension slides 37, 38.

[0024] Each drawer 20 may have a knob 30 mounted to a front face thereof, providing the user with a handle to grasp when opening or closing the drawer 20. Additionally, a padded layer 40 (shown in FIG. 3) may be provided on the floor of each drawer 20, with the padded layer 40 being adapted for supporting delicate articles of jewelry 42 thereon. Padded layer 40 may be formed from velvet, felt or the like.

[0025] It is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the embodiment described above, but encompasses any and all embodiments within the scope of the following claims.