GB2290226A - A garment hanger and a method of making same - Google Patents
A garment hanger and a method of making same Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- GB2290226A GB2290226A GB9411989A GB9411989A GB2290226A GB 2290226 A GB2290226 A GB 2290226A GB 9411989 A GB9411989 A GB 9411989A GB 9411989 A GB9411989 A GB 9411989A GB 2290226 A GB2290226 A GB 2290226A
- Authority
- GB
- United Kingdom
- Prior art keywords
- garment hanger
- body portion
- hanger
- garment
- arms
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Withdrawn
Links
Classifications
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A47—FURNITURE; DOMESTIC ARTICLES OR APPLIANCES; COFFEE MILLS; SPICE MILLS; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
- A47G—HOUSEHOLD OR TABLE EQUIPMENT
- A47G25/00—Household implements used in connection with wearing apparel; Dress, hat or umbrella holders
- A47G25/14—Clothing hangers, e.g. suit hangers
- A47G25/28—Hangers characterised by their shape
- A47G25/36—Hangers characterised by their shape characterised by the selection of the material, e.g. paper, board, plastics, glass
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A47—FURNITURE; DOMESTIC ARTICLES OR APPLIANCES; COFFEE MILLS; SPICE MILLS; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
- A47G—HOUSEHOLD OR TABLE EQUIPMENT
- A47G25/00—Household implements used in connection with wearing apparel; Dress, hat or umbrella holders
- A47G25/14—Clothing hangers, e.g. suit hangers
- A47G25/20—Clothing hangers, e.g. suit hangers with devices for preserving the shape of the clothes
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B29—WORKING OF PLASTICS; WORKING OF SUBSTANCES IN A PLASTIC STATE IN GENERAL
- B29C—SHAPING OR JOINING OF PLASTICS; SHAPING OF MATERIAL IN A PLASTIC STATE, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; AFTER-TREATMENT OF THE SHAPED PRODUCTS, e.g. REPAIRING
- B29C45/00—Injection moulding, i.e. forcing the required volume of moulding material through a nozzle into a closed mould; Apparatus therefor
- B29C45/16—Making multilayered or multicoloured articles
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B29—WORKING OF PLASTICS; WORKING OF SUBSTANCES IN A PLASTIC STATE IN GENERAL
- B29L—INDEXING SCHEME ASSOCIATED WITH SUBCLASS B29C, RELATING TO PARTICULAR ARTICLES
- B29L2031/00—Other particular articles
- B29L2031/735—Garment hangers
Abstract
A garment hanger comprising a body portion 1, means 3 associated with the body portion 1 for suspending the garment hanger from a rail of the like and two arms 5 extending outwardly in opposite directions from the body portion 1, wherein the body portion 1 is formed from a first material and the end 5b farthest from the body portion 1 of at least one of the arms 5 is formed from a second material, the rigidity of the second material being less than that of the first material. Such a hanger is particularly suitable for use with knitwear garments and provides distinct advantages over the prior art. The manufacturing process used to produce garment hangers according to the present invention comprises injecting a first material into a mould to produce the body portion, and injecting a suitable second material into the same mould to produce the end portions of the arms. The first material may be polystyrene, and the second, a thermoplastic elastomer. <IMAGE>
Description
A GARMENT HANGER AND METHOD OF MAKING SAME
This invention relates to garment hangers and methods of making same.
Knitwear hangers, which generally have an inverted Ushaped cross section, are well known. Such a hanger is shown in Figure 1A. As will be seen, the prior art hanger comprises a body portion 1, a metal hook 3 attached to the body portion 1 for suspending the garment hanger from a rail or the like and two arms 5 extending outwardly in opposite directions from the body portion 1.
When manufacturing a prior art knitwear hanger as shown in Figure 1A, it is normal to inject a first material, usually polystyrene, polypropylene or some other suitable plastics material, into a mould defining the body portion 1 and the arms 5. The metal hook 3 has an end held within the mould during manufacture so that the body portion 1 is formed gripping the end of the hook 3. Such a moulding process is well known and works very well. However, if a reduced "shot weight" of plastics material is applied to the mould, a "short moulding" is produced as shown in Figure 1B.
In this regard, the plastics material simply flows into the mould until the supply of material is exhausted. Thus, the outer ends of the two arms 5 can be left unfinished, thereby resulting in a useless garment hanger.
The essence of the present invention resides primarily in the realisation of the inventors that the use of a "short moulding" can in fact be put to good use, especially for garment hangers such as knitwear hangers. More particularly, the invention resides in producing a "short moulding" on purpose and filling the remainder of the garment hanger mould with a second material such that the ends of the arms of the garment hanger are less rigid than the remainder of the garment hanger. This results in a cushioning effect as a garment, such as a piece of knitwear, is placed on the hanger.
According to the present invention, there is provided a garment hanger comprising a body portion, means associated with the body portion for suspending the garment hanger from a rail or the like and two arms extending outwardly in opposite directions from the body portion, wherein the body portion is formed from a first material and the end farthest from the body portion of at least one of the arms is formed from a second material, the rigidity of the second material being less than that of the first material.
Such a hanger is ideal for knitwear, but is of course suitable for use with many other garments also. Further, by providing hanger ends having a soft cushioning effect, snagging and poking through the shoulders of a garment tend to be avoided. Additionally, unwanted stretching of the garment is less likely to occur.
Preferably between 5% and 80% by volume of an arm is formed from the second material. More preferably, between 25% and 50% by volume of the arm is formed from the second material. As a result, significant bending of the end of the arm can occur when a garment is placed on the hanger.
Furthermore, the larger the amount of the arm which is formed from the second, less rigid material, the greater the bending of the arm which can occur. Hence, garment hangers suitable for supporting garments of different sizes can be manufactured using the same mould, simply by varying the relative amounts of the first and second material.
Preferably the second material provides a surface having a significant coefficient of friction such that garments mounted on the hanger are prevented from sliding off the hanger.
Although not essential, the first material may provide a substantially smooth surface finish, which may facilitate mounting of a garment on the hanger.
Preferably the part of the or each arm which is not formed from the second material is formed from the first material. In theory, however, a third material could be used to produce portions of the arms of the hanger between the ends of the arms and the body portion. This may be advantageous if, for example, the material to be used for the ends of the arms does not bond particularly well with the material used for the body portion of the garment hanger.
Preferably the body portion and the parts of the arms formed from the first material are produced by a first moulding step and the end of the or each arm formed from the second material is produced thereafter by a second moulding step.
A portion of the arm formed from the second material may be rippled or otherwise shaped to assist in controlling the degree of bending of the end of the arm, in use.
In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the ends of both arms are formed from the second material.
Although the first material may be any suitable material, it is preferably a polystyrene or polypropylene.
Although the second material may be any suitable material which is less rigid than the first material, the second material is preferably a thermoplastic elastomer.
In a preferred embodiment, the garment hanger is a knitwear hanger having an inverted U-shaped cross section.
The present invention also provides a method of manufacturing a garment hanger comprising a body portion, means for suspending the garment hanger from a rail or the like and two arms extending outwardly in opposite directions from the body portion, comprising the steps of
(a) injecting a first material into a mould to produce at least a body portion and
(b) injecting a second material into the mould to complete the or each end of the arms farthest from the body portion, wherein, when set, the second material is less rigid than the first material.
Preferably between steps (a) and (b), the first material is allowed to begin to harden.
Preferably the first material is injected into the central region of the mould and the second material is injected into the or each end of the mould. Alternatively, the mould may initially be shortened to define at least the body portion for receiving the first material prior to being extended to define the remainder of the hanger for receiving the second material.
In another method of manufacturing a garment hanger according to the present invention, the body portion may be formed in a first mould prior to the part-formed article being transferred to a second mould for forming the remainder of the hanger.
The relative amounts of the first and second materials injected into the mould or moulds preferably define the effective size of the completed garment hanger after manufacture. For example, if the second material is very flexible, when set, a significant amount of bending of the ends of the garment hanger can occur such that the complete garment hanger can be used to support garments of relatively small size.
The means for suspending the garment hanger may be a metal hook which is fixed to the body portion during the moulding of the body portion. Alternatively, the means for suspending the garment hanger could be a moulded hook which is formed at the same time as the body portion itself.
As will be appreciated from the foregoing, one size of mould tool may be used for producing garment hangers having different effective sizes simply by changing the relative amounts of first and second material. As a result, fewer tool changes may be required and, indeed, fewer moulds will be needed to produce a range of garment hangers. This is clearly a significant advantage over the prior art, since moulds can be extremely expensive.
Specific embodiments of the present invention are now described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:
Figure 1A is a perspective view of a prior art knitwear hanger;
Figure 1B is a perspective view of a "short moulding" knitwear hanger;
Figure 2 is a first embodiment of a garment hanger according to the present invention;
Figure 3A is a front view of the garment hanger of
Figure 2;
Figure 3B is a front view of the garment hanger of
Figure 3A, but wherein a garment is shown schematically mounted on the hanger;
Figure 4A is a front view of a second embodiment of garment hanger according to the present invention;
Figure 4B is a front view of the hanger of Figure 4A with a garment shown schematically mounted on the hanger;;
Figures 5A, 5B and 5C are front views of garment hangers according to the present invention showing the effect of changing the relative amounts of first material and second material used in the garment hangers; and
Figure 6A is a plan view of another embodiment of garment hanger according to the present invention;
Figure 6B is a front view of the garment hanger of
Figure 6A; and
Figure 6C is a front view of the garment hanger of
Figures 6A and 6B showing bending of the ends of the garment hanger controlled, at least in part, by the ripples defined on the garment hanger.
With reference to Figures 2-6, a garment hanger according to the present invention comprises essentially the same components as that of the prior art hanger as shown in
Figure 1A. Namely, the garment hanger comprises a body portion 1, a metal hook 3 for suspending the garment hanger from a rail or the like and two arms 5 extending outwardly from the body portion 1. However, the arms 5 of a garment hanger according to the present invention are formed in two parts, 5a and 5b. The inner part 5A of each arm 5 is moulded from the same material as the body portion 1, namely polystyrene or any other suitable material. This results effectively in the "short moulding" shown in Figure 1B. The ends 5b of the arms 5 are then formed from a second material, such as a thermoplastic elastomer.As a result, the body portion 1 and arm portions 5a provide rigidity to the hanger, whereas the ends 5b of the arms are less rigid and can, therefore, bend to a greater degree. This results in a cushioning effect when a garment is placed on the hanger.
By using an elastomeric material for the ends of the arms, a degree of friction is provided between the ends 5b and a garment placed on the hanger. This can assist in retaining the garment on the hanger, which in the past may have been prone to sliding off a prior art garment hanger due to the smooth surface finish of polystyrene, for example.
As can be seen from Figures 3A and 3B, the ends 5b of the arms 5 of the garment hanger effectively "mould" to the shape of the garment 7 mounted on the hanger, at least to a certain extent. Hence, snagging of the garment 7 is less likely to occur and the shape of the garment 7 is less likely to be distorted. These are clear advantages of a garment hanger according to the present invention over the prior art.
In a second embodiment of garment hanger according to the present invention as shown in Figures 4A and 4B, the arms 5 of the garment hanger are moulded substantially straight. However, when a garment 7 is mounted on the hanger, as shown schematically in Figure 4B, the ends 5b of the arms 5 are able to bend due to the resilient nature of the material used for the ends 5b of the arms 5. When the garment 7 is removed from the hanger, the ends 5b of the arms 5 will tend to revert back to their original orientations.
As will be seen from Figures 5A-5C, by altering the relative amounts of first material and second material used in a garment hanger moulding, the degree of bending of the ends 5b of the arms 5 when a garment is mounted thereon can be varied. More particularly, in Figure 5A only a very small amount of second material is used for the extreme ends 5B during manufacture of the garment hanger. Hence, little bending of the ends 5b can occur and the garment hanger retains its full size during use.However, as progressively more of the second material is used (i.e. sufficient to fill portions Sc and 5d of the arms 5), progressively more bending of the ends 5b of the arms 5 can occur such that the effective size of the garment hanger can be reduced. Hence, hangers having different effective sizes can be produced from the same mould tool. This is another significant advantage of the present invention over the prior art.
Although not essential to the working of the present invention, a third embodiment of garment hanger according to the present invention, as shown in Figures 6A-6C, incorporates a rippled or otherwise shaped region 9 within the ends 5b of the arms 5. This rippled region 9 is shaped to assist in controlling the amount of bending of the ends 5B when a garment is applied to the hanger (cf. Figure 6C).
This shaped portion 9 may be formed during the moulding of the garment hanger or, alternatively, as a later production step.
Although the second material could be applied to the garment hanger mould first, with the first material applied to the mould afterwards to complete the mould, it is preferable that the first material is injected into the mould first to define the body portion 1 and the inner portions 5a of the arms 5. The second material is then applied through second entrances to the mould cavity situated at the ends of the arms 5 of the mould. As a result, a complete garment hanger can be produced.
The metal hook 3 is preferably positioned such that its bottom end 3a is held within the body portion of the mould cavity during injection of the first material. This results in the hook 3 being held firmly within the body portion 1 at the end of the manufacturing process. Alternatively, the hook 3 could be barbed such that it can be pressed into the body portion after the moulding process has been completed.
Although not a preferred form of the present invention, in theory a third material could be used between the first and second materials to produce a portion of the arms 5 of the hanger. This could be advantageous if, for example, the first and second materials chosen are not sufficiently compatible to produce a good bond at their interface. In such a case, the third material may be useful to assist in bonding the ends 5b to the remainder of the arms 5a.
It will of course be understood that the present invention has been described above purely by way of example, and that modifications of detail can be made within the scope of the invention.
Claims (21)
1. A garment hanger comprising a body portion, means associated with the body portion for suspending the garment hanger from a rail or the like and two arms extending outwardly in opposite directions from the body portion, wherein the body portion is formed from a first material and the end farthest from the body portion of at least one of the arms is formed from a second material, the rigidity of the second material being less than that of the first material.
2. A garment hanger as claimed in claim 1, wherein between 5% and 80% by volume of an arm is formed from the second material.
3. A garment hanger as claimed in claim 2, wherein between 25% and 50% by volume of the arm is formed from the second material.
4. A garment hanger as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the second material provides a surface having a significant coefficient of friction such that garments mounted on the hanger are prevented from sliding off the hanger.
5. A garment hanger as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the first material provides a substantially smooth surface finish.
6. A garment hanger as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the part of the or each arm which is not formed from the second material is formed from the first material.
7. A garment hanger as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the body portion and the parts of the arms formed from the first material are produced by a first moulding step and the end of the or each arm formed from the second material is produced thereafter by a second moulding step.
8. A garment hanger as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein at least a portion of the arm formed from the second material is rippled to assist in controlling the degree of bending of the end of the arm, in use.
9. A garment hanger as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the ends of both arms are formed from the second material.
10. A garment hanger as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the first material is polystyrene.
11. A garment hanger as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the second material is a thermoplastic elastomer.
12. A garment hanger as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the garment hanger is a knitwear hanger.
13. A garment hanger substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as shown in Figures 2 and 3 or Figure 4 or Figure 5 or Figure 6 of the accompanying drawings.
14. A method of manufacturing a garment hanger comprising a body portion, means for suspending the garment hanger from a rail or the like and two arms extending outwardly in opposite directions from the body portion, comprising the steps of
(a) injecting a first material into a mould to produce at least the body portion and
(b) injecting a second material into the mould to complete the or each end of the arms farthest from the body portion, wherein, when set, the second material is less rigid than the first material.
15. A method as claimed in claim 14, wherein, between steps (a) and (b), the first material is allowed to begin to harden.
16. A method as claimed in claim 14 or claim 15, wherein the first material is injected into the central region of the mould and the second material is injected into the or each end of the mould.
17. A method as claimed in any one of claims 14-16, wherein the relative amounts of the first and second materials injected into the mould define the effective size of the completed garment hanger after manufacture.
18. A method as claimed in any one of claims 14-17, wherein the means for suspending the garment hanger is a metal hook fixed to the body portion during the moulding of the body portion.
19. A method as claimed in any one of claims 14-18, wherein the first material is polystyrene.
20. A method as claimed in any one of claims 14-19, wherein the second material is a thermoplastic elastomer.
21. A method of manufacturing a garment hanger substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as shown in
Figure 2, 3A and 3B, Figures 4A and 4B, Figures 5A, 5B and 5C or Figures 6A, 6B and 6C of the accompanying drawings.
Priority Applications (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| GB9411989A GB2290226A (en) | 1994-06-15 | 1994-06-15 | A garment hanger and a method of making same |
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| GB9411989A GB2290226A (en) | 1994-06-15 | 1994-06-15 | A garment hanger and a method of making same |
Publications (2)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| GB9411989D0 GB9411989D0 (en) | 1994-08-03 |
| GB2290226A true GB2290226A (en) | 1995-12-20 |
Family
ID=10756768
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| GB9411989A Withdrawn GB2290226A (en) | 1994-06-15 | 1994-06-15 | A garment hanger and a method of making same |
Country Status (1)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| GB (1) | GB2290226A (en) |
Cited By (5)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GB2296887A (en) * | 1995-01-10 | 1996-07-17 | Batts Inc | Drop loop garment hanger with moulded loop segment |
| GB2371220A (en) * | 2001-01-17 | 2002-07-24 | Fergus Allan Graeme Hardie | Hanger |
| GB2388811A (en) * | 2002-03-28 | 2003-11-26 | Spotless Plastics Pty Ltd | Method for anchoring an elastomer into a thermoplastic during injection moulding |
| EP1413232A1 (en) * | 2002-10-22 | 2004-04-28 | MAINETTI Tecnologie S.p.A. | Procedure for realising a bimaterial garment hanger |
| EP1530936A1 (en) * | 2003-11-12 | 2005-05-18 | Spotless Plastics Pty. Ltd. | Knitwear hanger |
Citations (2)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GB2206783A (en) * | 1987-07-03 | 1989-01-18 | Christos Megas | Clothes hanger |
| US5056694A (en) * | 1990-07-20 | 1991-10-15 | Michalik Albert S | Clothes hanger pad construction |
-
1994
- 1994-06-15 GB GB9411989A patent/GB2290226A/en not_active Withdrawn
Patent Citations (2)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GB2206783A (en) * | 1987-07-03 | 1989-01-18 | Christos Megas | Clothes hanger |
| US5056694A (en) * | 1990-07-20 | 1991-10-15 | Michalik Albert S | Clothes hanger pad construction |
Cited By (11)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GB2296887A (en) * | 1995-01-10 | 1996-07-17 | Batts Inc | Drop loop garment hanger with moulded loop segment |
| GB2296887B (en) * | 1995-01-10 | 1998-12-16 | Batts Inc | Drop loop garment hanger |
| GB2371220A (en) * | 2001-01-17 | 2002-07-24 | Fergus Allan Graeme Hardie | Hanger |
| GB2371220B (en) * | 2001-01-17 | 2002-12-18 | Fergus Allan Graeme Hardie | Hanger |
| GB2388811A (en) * | 2002-03-28 | 2003-11-26 | Spotless Plastics Pty Ltd | Method for anchoring an elastomer into a thermoplastic during injection moulding |
| US6772923B2 (en) | 2002-03-28 | 2004-08-10 | Spotless Plastics Pty. Ltd. | Method for anchoring an elastomer into a thermoplastic during injection molding |
| GB2388811B (en) * | 2002-03-28 | 2005-10-05 | Spotless Plastics Pty Ltd | A coinjected plastic garment hanger and a method of coinjecting molding a composite plastic garment hanger |
| CN100354101C (en) * | 2002-03-28 | 2007-12-12 | 斯波特雷斯塑料有限公司 | Method for anchoring an elastomer into a thermoplastic during injection molding |
| EP1413232A1 (en) * | 2002-10-22 | 2004-04-28 | MAINETTI Tecnologie S.p.A. | Procedure for realising a bimaterial garment hanger |
| EP1530936A1 (en) * | 2003-11-12 | 2005-05-18 | Spotless Plastics Pty. Ltd. | Knitwear hanger |
| AU2004229053B2 (en) * | 2003-11-12 | 2009-10-08 | Spotless Plastics Pty. Ltd. | Knitwear hanger |
Also Published As
| Publication number | Publication date |
|---|---|
| GB9411989D0 (en) | 1994-08-03 |
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Legal Events
| Date | Code | Title | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| 732E | Amendments to the register in respect of changes of name or changes affecting rights (sect. 32/1977) | ||
| 732E | Amendments to the register in respect of changes of name or changes affecting rights (sect. 32/1977) | ||
| 732E | Amendments to the register in respect of changes of name or changes affecting rights (sect. 32/1977) | ||
| WAP | Application withdrawn, taken to be withdrawn or refused ** after publication under section 16(1) |