GB2223615A - Holding devices - Google Patents

Abstract

A holder for "poms" (cylindrical bundles of yarns) comprises a strip of plastics sheet material having a section 10 with apertures 20 for receiving poms, and a second section 12 which is located behind the first section to provide a support surface for the poms when inserted in said apertures. A support leg 18 integral with the holder ensures that the said plates are arranged in an upwardly and rearwardly inclined position when the holder rests on a horizontal surface and is viewed from a front end, thereby to present the poms for convenient viewing. <IMAGE>

Description

Improvements Relating to Holding Devices This invention relates to holding devices, and concerns in particular a holding device for holding the yarn samples or "poms" disclosed in our co-pending Patent Application No. 8809825.6 filed 26th April 1988.

As disclosed in said application, a pom comprises a bunch of yarns held together in a cylindrical sleeve.

The yarns are of the same colour, and project from an end of the sleeve so as to define an enlarged head giving the total article the appearance of a mushroom or toadstool. These poms are used for colour displays to enable designers, architects and the like to make colour selections for example when chosing carpets or other textiles or furnishings for buildings. Disclosed in said co-pending application is a system for enabling the display of a large selection of hues or tones of colour by providing a plurality of poms of different colour hues or shades.

When one uses the system as disclosed specifically in said co-pending application, it is frequently required that the user should pick selected poms of different colours or hues which are not normally located side by side, and position same side by side in order to assess the colour effect. The present invention is concerned with providing a simple and effective holder for holding such poms, in a specific embodiment of the invention, although it is to be appreciated that perhaps the invention has wider application, and can be adapted for holding different samples or objects.The poms described above are of circular cross section, and the holder according to the embodiment of the invention described herein has circular apertures related to the circular section poms for the holding of same, but if the articles to be held are of a different shape, then the apertures would be shaped accordingly.

As clearly the most significant embodiment of the invention, as far as the present applicant is concerned is the holding of the said poms, reference is made hereinafter only to the said poms and where apertures are referred to in relation to said poms, it will be understood that such apertures are of circular configuration.

In the use of the holder according to the invention, the person picking the poms will pick same from various groups of poms in the system as described in said copending application, and will place the selected poms in the holder so that they lie side by side and the user can examine the colour effect, and in particular embodiments the holder will be adapted to stand on a surface to present the poms at a convenient viewing angle, and also the holder may be such to enable it to be suspended by hanging over the edge of for example a drawing or design board.

The holder can of course take different configurations, but in a particular embodiment it is fabricated so as to be generally elongated and parallel sided, and is formed from a single sheet of rigid plastics material suitably bent into the holder configuration.

In accordance with the invention, the holder provides essentially plate means defining a plurality of apertures for the receipt of the poms, and means behind the plate means for limiting the extent to which the poms can be inserted into the apertures.

The said means limiting may be such as to ensure that the poms can be inserted into the respective apertures only by the same extent so that the heads of the poms constituted by the yarn ends of the respective samples when in the holder will lie in a common plane.

The limiting means preferably comprises a second plate means located behind the first mentioned plate means by a predetermined amount. The first mentioned plate means and second plate means preferably are formed in the same body of plastics sheet material which is folded into the desired configuration.

The said first and second plates preferably are of rectangular configuration and have a front end and a rear end, and at the front end the plates are connected by a U-sectioned support and at the rear end the plates are not connected but the rear end of the first plate means having the apertures therein has an extension which is inclined downwardly so as to form a support leg whereby when the holder rests on a surface, the plate means will lie at an angle so as to extend upwardly from front to rear providing that the poms held therein can be viewed conveniently.

The plate means may be of a width convenient for holding in the hand.

Typically, the first plate means has some 24 or so apertures therein for the receipt of 24 poms.

The plastics material for which the holder is formed preferably is of a translucent or transparent plastics material which is rigid in nature.

An embodiment of the present invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein: Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a holder according to the embodiment of the invention; Fig. 2 is a side view of the holder shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a plan view of the holder shown in Fig. 1; and Fig. 4 is a perspective view of a pom adapted for insertion in the apertures in the holder shown in Figs.

1 to 3.

Referring to Fig. 1, the holder shown is manufactured from sheet plastics material and typically a single strip of sheet plastics material which is rigid in nature, but which can be shaped by heating and folding.

The strip is so heated and folded to define the holder, and in this connection the holder comprises a first and front plate 10, a rear and second plate 12 which is under the plate 10 and is spaced therefrom by a predetermined amount. The first and second plates have front ends connected by the U-shaped section 14, and at the rear end the plate 12 has an upturned flange 16 of which the edge faces the underside of the plate 10. At the rear edge of plate 10 is a shaped leg 18 which is of U-section, and an inner limb 18A thereof has a free edge 18B which lies to the underside of the plate 10 adjacent the flange 16 in order to form a stop to prevent the plate 12 from being deflected downwardly away from the plate 10.

The plate 10 has a plurality of circular apertures 20 for the receipt of poms 22 each as shown in Fig. 4 for the purposes of viewing same whilst they are held in side by side relationship.

As can be appreciated from Fig. 2, the portion 14 and the leg 18 serve to support the plates 10 and 12 at an inclination relative to the surface on which the holder stands such that the plates 10 and 12 slope upwardly and rearwardly from the portion 14.

The holder shown in Figs. 1 to 3 is for use in connection with a system described in said co-pending Application 8809825.6 which describes and illustrates an arrangement wherein a multiplicity of poms each are shown in Fig. 2 and containing yarn samples 24 of different colours is described. To use the holder of Fig. l, which is of a size such that it can be held in the hand by gripping the side edges of the plates 10 and 12 between the fingers and the thumb, individual poms 22 are placed in the apertures as shown in Figs. 1 and 2 so that the head portions defined by the yarns 24 can be viewed side by side in order to assess a colour effect. The leg 18 also serves to enable the holder to be hooked from a horizontal edge, for example the edge of a drawing or design board.

The embodiment of the invention described can of course be constructed in other geometric forms, and it is not necessary that the rectangular configuration illustrated be adopted.

The holder provides a simple and convenient means for enabling the individual poms to be placed side by side for colour coordination assessment for the purposes of selecting colours for carpets, curtains or other textiles.

Claims (9)

1. A pom holder comprising plate means defining a plurality of apertures for the receipt of the poms, and means behind the plate means for limiting the extent to which the poms can be inserted into the apertures.

2. A pom holder according to Claim 1 wherein said means limiting are such as to ensure that the poms can be inserted into the respective apertures only by the same extent so that the heads of the poms constituted by the yarn ends of the respective samples when in the holder will lie in a common plane.

3. A pom holder according to Claim 2 wherein the limiting means comprises a second plate means located behind the first mentioned plate means by a pre-determined amount.

4. A pom holder according to Claim 3 wherein the first mentioned plate means and second plate means are formed in the same body of plastic sheet material which is folded into the desired configuration.

5. A pom holder according to Claim 4 wherein the first and second plates are of rectangular configuration and have a front end and a rear end, and at the front end the plates are connected by a U-section support and at the rear end the plates are not connected but the rear end of the first plate means having the apertures therein has an extension which is inclined downwardly so as to form a support leg whereby when the holder rests on a surface, the plate means will lie at an angle so as to extend upwardly from front to rear providing that the poms held therein can be viewed conveniently.

6. A pom holder according to any preceding claim having a width convenient for holding in the hand.

7. A pom holder according to any preceding claim wherein said plate means has 24 apertures for receipt of 24 poms.

8. A pom holder according to any preceding claim formed in plastics material of a translucent or transparent nature.

9. A pom holder substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.