GB2233888A

GB2233888A - Hanger with hook

Info

Publication number: GB2233888A
Application number: GB8916023A
Authority: GB
Inventors: William Boteler Edwards; Richard David Napthine
Original assignee: NAPTHINE ROSEMARY GRACE
Current assignee: NAPTHINE ROSEMARY GRACE
Priority date: 1989-07-13
Filing date: 1989-07-13
Publication date: 1991-01-23
Anticipated expiration: 2009-07-13
Also published as: GB2233888B; GB8916023D0

Abstract

A clothes hanger has a hanger bar 14 formed with an enlarged central boss 18; a hook whose end portion is formed with an enlarged cylindrical collar 32, a smaller cylindrical section 34, and a smaller square section key 36; and a cylindrical plug 16 connecting the bar with the hook. Plug 16 lodges in a cylindrical recess 20 of boss 18. Cylindrical wall 42 of recess 20 has circumferentially spaced indentations 44; and outer surface 46 of plug 16 has a pair of opposite nibs 48 able to engage therewith releasably locking the plug (and hence the hook) in its angular position relative to the hanger bar, but so that by application of torque the plug can be rotated bringing the nibs into engagement with the next pair of opposite indentations (as by snap action). Hence the hook can be located in several angular positions relative to the hanger body. <IMAGE>

Description

hanger with hook This invention relates to hangers that have a hook, particularly but not exclusively clothes hangers moulded from synthetic plastics, such as bar or peg hangers, coat hangers (with or without cross bar), and peg hooks (e.g.

with a short bar for suspending e.g. a neck-tie by way of a peg), but is also applicable to hangers intended for other uses.

In one conventional form of clothes hanger the hook is captive with a hanger body but can rotate freely about its shank; and in another conventional form the hanger body and shank are fixed relative to each other (as e.g.

in hangers that are monolithic plastics mouldings), usually with the hook in line with the hanger body.

The object of the invention is to provide an improved form of hanger.

A hanger according to the invention has a hanger body, a hook, and interengagement means therebetween for locating the hook in any one of at least three predetermined angular positions relative to the body, the hook when in said positions being restrained against rotation. Preferably, so that the hanger may be used in the conventional manner, one of the hook positions is in line with the body, another is at right angles thereto and yet another is at an angle intermediate therebetween.

Preferably one of the intermediate positions is at an angle of 450 to the line of the body, and desirably provision is made to locate the hook in any one of eight positions at 450 to each other. Alternatively, one of the intermediate positions is at an angle of 300 or 600 to the line of the body, and then desirably provision is made to locate the hook in any one of twelve positions at 300 to each other. And the arrangement for intermediate positions may be a combination of the foregoing, namely at angles of 300, 450 and 600 to the line of the body.

With the hook locked into position in line with the hanger body (which will normally be the central plane common to the axis of the hook and the hanger body, but could be somewhat shifted from this in the case of a shaped hanger of substantial extent front to back such as a wishbone hanger) the hanger operates in the conventional way. With the hook in its 900 position, the hanger can be hung e.g. from the edge of a door and in other occasionally required domestic or retail situations.But additionally, the hanger is suitable for the display of garments and other goods at e.g. 450 to a hanger bar; this will be very useful in shops since it would display items at this angle, both on an ordinary straight display rail and on rails extending at right angles from a wall, but also enables garments to be well displayed from wall brackets extending from shop walls at 450 (wall brackets are commonly installed in shops extending at 450 from walls, for display of garments at 450 to gangways, since this tends to attract customers into a shop, as well as helping to display the garment).

The interengagement means may be such that, upon the application of appropriate force overcoming the restraint against rotation, it releases the hook from its position and permits it to be rotated to re-locate it in another position. Preferably, location in position is by way of a snap- action device, and desirably the arrangement is such that the application of sufficient torque to the hook permits it to be rotated to re-locate it, again by snap action.

Such hangers are extremely versatile. And of course the versatility of the hanger makes it more economical than hangers with fixed hooks. It should be noted that hangers in which the hook is freely rotatable would not be suitable for display of garments at an inclined angle to a rail, since in practice the angle would differ from garment to garment and the resultant display would be untidy and unsightly.

The interengagement means can take many different forms. Thus it could be by way of a central circular recess in the hanger body receiving (from above) an end portion of the stem of the hook, the hook being irremovably captive in the recess (e.g. by re-entrant snap fastened ledges), the end portion of the stem being rotatable in the recess, with at least one radial protuberance on the stem or in the recess and an appropriate number of indentations on or in the other of them, the protuberances and indentations co-operating to provide snap action location of the hook relative to the body in the several predetermined positions.

But preferably the interengagement means includes a plug adapted for engagement with the hanger body and with the stem of the hook, a non-circular end portion of the stem engaging in a non-circular complementary hole of the plug so as to be rotationally fast with it, the plug holding the stem of the hook captive with the body and engaging the body in each of the said predetermined positions, being rotatable relative to the body by the application of torque overcoming snap action engagement between the plug and the body. The plug may be of a different plastics material from that of the other components; this enables less costly materials to be used for the larger components (leaving only the plug to be made of material required to have particular properties such as strength, rigidity or resilience, and/or accuracy in moulding).

In order that the invention may be clearly understood and readily carried into effect, one form thereof will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Fig. 1 depicts diagrammatically part of a bar hanger embodying the invention; Fig. 2(a) is an elevation (partly in section) of the bar of the hanger of Fig. 1; Fig. 2(b) is an underneath plan of the bar of Fig. 2(a); and, Figs. 3(a) and 3(b) show on an enlarged scale the interconnection of bar and hook, in vertical section and in horizontal section respectively.

Turning to the drawings, a bar hanger generally designated 10 has a hook 12 and a hanger body in the form of a tar 14 interconnected by a cylindrical plug 16. The several items are moulded from synthetic plastics, namely the hook and bar from polypropelene (which makes mouldings that vary somewhat dlesionally) and the plug from ABS (greater in strength and mouldable accurately); the plug which is much the smaller item is made from the more costly material.

The bar and the hook are mainly oval in section (as best seen by comparison of Figs. 2(a) and 2(b), showing the bar to be greater in height than in thickness). The bar has an enlarged circular boss 18 provided with an underneath cylindrical recess 20 forming a shoulder 22 leading into a reduced circular aperture 24.

The plug fits into the recess 20 and is pierced by a square section hole 26.

The hook has a stem 28 and its end portion generally designated 30 has several elements namely an enlarged cylindrical collar 32 which overlies the reduced aperture 24 and abuts against the boss 18, a smaller cylindrical section 34 journalled in that reduced aperture, and a yet smaller square section key 36 lodged in and engaging with the complementary square section hole 26. A tab 37 can receive a self adhesive label or a sizing cube (i.e, a cuboid element marked and/or coloured to indicate size and perhaps other attributes of the garment to be displayed on the hanger).

When assembled (see particularly Figs. 3(a) and 3(b)), the key 36 is held captive in the hole 26 by interlocked snap fastened ledges 38 and 40 on the key and on the walls of the hole respectively, and with the top 41 of the plug abutting against the shoulder 22. Thus, the hook is held interengaged with the bar. Also, the cylindrical wall 42 of the recess 20 has eight indentations 44 circumferentially spaced at angles of 450 from each other, and the outer surface 46 of the cylindrical plug 16 has a pair of opposite protuberances or nibs 48 able to engage with an opposite pair of the indentations 44.The relative dimensions and resilience of the co-acting parts are such that when the nibs are in engagement with the indentations, the hook is held locked in its angular position relative to the bar, but can be forced to rotate, releasing the nibs from their then pair of opposite indentations to move them to the next pair of indentations where they again click into engagement. So that the hook can be locked in line with the axis of the bar (and perpendicular and at 450 angles to it), the nibs are in line with the direction of the hook and one pair of indentations is in line with the bar; this is the arrangment shown in Fig. 3(b) but the indentations could equally well be displaced by 22.50 as indicated in Fig. 2(b), the nibs then being displaced correspondingly.

It will readily be understood that many modifications could be made to the form of hanger described above without departing from the scope of the invention as set fort in the appended claims. Thus, in the case of a coat hanger, the boss 18 would of course be at the apex of the hanger, centrally with respect to the top of the shoulders. And, for example, the hook could be integral with the plug (the recess 20 in the boss of the hanger bar being enlarged to permit passage of the curved portion of the hook during assembly). And in such a construction, the angular position of the hook relative to the bar could be varied by downward displacement of the hook to withdraw the plug from the recess in the bar, followed by rotation of the hook and plug and reinsertion of the plug in an angularly different position. Also, the arrangement could be such that the application of lateral force (as e.g. by squeezing the boss to deform it) releases the locking action, permitting the hook to be rotated and angularly relocated.

Claims

CLAIMS:

1. A hanger having a hanger body, a hook, and interengagement means therebetween for locating the hook in any one of at least three predetermined angular positions relative to the body, the hook when in said positions being restrained against rotation.

2. A hanger according to claim 1 wherein one of said positions is in line with the body, another is at right angles thereto and yet another is at an angle intermediate therebetween.

3. A hanger according to either of the preceding claims wherein at least one of said positions is at an angle of 450 to the line of the body.

4. A hanger according to claim 3 wherein the hook can be located in any one of eight predetermined positions at 450 to each other.

5. A hanger according to claim 3 wherein at least one of said positions is at an angle of 300 or 600 to the line of the body.

6. A hanger according to claim 5 wherein the hook can be located in any one of twelve predetermined positions at 300 to each other.

7. A hanger according to claim 3 in combination with claim 5 or according to claim 4 in combination with claim 6.

8. A hanger according to any preceding claim wherein the interengagement means is such that, upon the application of appropriate force overcoming the restraint against rotation, it releases the hook from its said position and permits it to be rotated to re-locate it in another of said positions.

9. A hanger according to claim 8 wherein the inteengagement means locates the hook in position by way of a snap action device.

10. A hanger according to claim 9, the arrangement being such that the application of sufficient torque to the hook permits the hook to be rotated to re-locate it as aforesaid by snap action.

11. A hanger according to any preceding claim wherein the in;=rengage.enQ eans includes a plug adapted for engagement with the body and with the stem of the hook, a non-circular end portion of the stem engaging in a compementary recess of the plug so as to be rotationally fast with it, the plug holding the stem of the hook captive with the body and engaging the body in each of the said predetermined positions, being rotatable relative to the body by the application of torque overcoming snap action engagement therebetween.

12. A hanger substantially as shown in and hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.