US 4,482,066 · Granted 1984-11-13
The Pull-Out Shelf That Made Storage Racks Actually Usable
Imagine a storage shelf that slides out of a rack like a drawer, so you can reach everything in the back without moving boxes around. This patent locks down the mechanical system that makes shelves glide smoothly in and out on rollers and tracks — the same idea that powers pull-out pantry shelves and filing cabinets today.
The plain-English version
What it protects
The claim covers a storage rack with shelves that roll in and out on a track system. Specifically, what's protected is the combination of a shelf with rollers on its sides, a carriage (the frame the shelf sits in) with channels to guide those rollers, and vertical track surfaces on the rack itself that support the carriage as it slides. Anyone making an extendible shelf assembly using this same roller-and-channel mechanism would be infringing on this design.
Why it matters
This patent solved a real problem in warehouse and commercial storage: how to store dense inventory in tight spaces while still letting workers access items quickly. By allowing shelves to extend outward, it eliminated the need to reach deep into dark cabinets or move heavy boxes. The design became foundational for modern pull-out storage systems in kitchens, offices, and industrial facilities, influencing how we organize everything from filing systems to grocery store displays.
Real-world use
Every time you pull open a filing cabinet drawer or slide out a pantry shelf in your kitchen, you're benefiting from the mechanical principle this patent protects — rollers guiding a shelf smoothly along tracks so it extends fully into your hands.
Original USPTO abstract
A storage rack assembly having at least one storage shelf movable from a storage position to a fully extended position to enable loading and unloading characterized by a rack having a pair of side frame units which are interconnected to form a rack having an open front and at least one movable shelf assembly disposed in the rack and being movable from the storage position to a fully extended position extending out of the open front of the rack. Each shelf assembly includes a rigid shelf having side elements supporting spaced rollers, a rigid carriage having an open end and side members provided with a channel for receiving the rollers of the shelf for movement therein and the side elements of the carriage provide vertically spaced track surfaces which are received between two pairs of rollers on each side of the rack to enable the carriage to move in the rack.
Patent details
- Publication number
- US 4,482,066
- Filing date
- 1982-09-24
- Grant date
- 1984-11-13
- Assignee
- Dykstra Donald P
- Inventor(s)
- DYKSTRA; DONALD P.
- CPC class
- A47F5/0093
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