It is deceiving that an otherwise super-stable file cabinet can become critically unstable when it is unloaded or lightly loaded. This may expose office workers to the specter of a 200 lb. file cabinet striking the floor at 13 mph. File cabinet design is guided by standards that do not reflect “worst case scenarios,” do not specify realistic safety loads, do not include snagging forces, and do not account for the effects of carpeting that may lower the tip resistance by 40%. This paper introduces three well known anti-tip concepts that radically improve the stability of file cabinets; elastic footprint extender, passively deployed outriggers, and rollers that trade off rotation for translation. These traditional concepts are added to the current arsenal of safety tip-over devices that include wall and floor bolting, ganging, under-mounting, counter-weighting, and single drawer deployment interlocks. The stability principles discussed are also applicable to such things as furniture, appliances, and tool cabinets.

stability, overturn, tip, tip over, upset, topple, turn over