GB2352170A

GB2352170A - Clothes hanger

Info

Publication number: GB2352170A
Application number: GB0017724A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Franz Klein
Original assignee: WAGNER METALLWAREN MAWA
Current assignee: WAGNER METALLWAREN MAWA
Priority date: 1999-07-20
Filing date: 2000-07-19
Publication date: 2001-01-24
Also published as: GB0017724D0; DE29912295U1

Abstract

The hanger body for a clothes hanger comprises a first flat hanger element (16) that has a handle aperture and 36 is composed of two flat elements 20, 26 lying flat against one another and connected to one another. The flat elements 20, 26 are not connected to one another in the region above the handle aperture 36 so that a hanging hook 14 scan be inserted between the flat elements 20, 26 from above and the lower end of the hanging hook 14 can be hooked in at the edge of the handle aperture 36. Such a hanger body can be used for a clothes hanger/carrier bag combination that has a sack-shaped bag element 12 having an elongate upper opening, the hanger body being attached to the edge of the opening of the bag element as first hanger element (16) and a second hanger element (18) being attached to the edge of the opening of the bag elements 12 opposite to the first hanger element (16). The hanging hook for use in conjunction with such a hanger body or with such a clothes hanger/carrier bag combination has a straight shank having a hook element (40) arranged at the top thereof and having a widened base (42) attached at the lower end of the shank. The shank is secured to the upper end of the base (42) and a cut-out section (46) inside the base (42) delimits an upwardly pointing region 47, the first hanger element (16) being held in place between the upwardly pointing region 47 and the remainder of the base (42).

Description

Clothes Hanger The invention relates to a hanger body for a clothes

hanger. The hanger body is a flat hanger element having a handle aperture and is composed of two flat elements lying flat against one another.

The invention relates also to a clothes hanger/carrier bag combination having a sackshaped bag element that has an elongate upper opening, and having two hanger elements secured to opposite edges of the opening of the bag element.

A hanging hook can be secured to the hanger body and in the clothes hanger/carrier bag combination the two hanger elements are held together by the hanging hook. The invention relates also to such a hanging hook.

Clothes hanger/carrier bag combinations have the advantage that an item of clothing can be transported on such a clothes hanger from the manufacturer to the retailer, where it is displayed on the clothes hanger and can then be packed into the carrier bag upon purchase, the hanging hook then either being placed in the carrier bag or returned to the manufacturer by the purchaser for re-use. The carrier bag may be provided with a printed advertisement.

EP-A-0 576 884 discloses such a hanger body and such a clothes hanger/carrier bag combination. The hanging hook is hooked into a wide slot-shaped opening provided in addition to the handle aperture. The flat elements are made of corrugated cardboard and are covered with cr6pe tape along the shoulder lines in order to protect the relatively sharp edges. In the clothes hanger/carrier bag combination, the hanging hook engages around both hanger elements on the outside. During transport of several items of clothing using such clothes hanger/carrier bag combinations, the hanging hooks, which are made from bent wire, rest against one another and can thus become entangled with one another.

Furthermore, a clothes hanger/carrier bag combination is known only from DE-A-1 579 550. Rotatably arranged at the centre of the top of the hanger flap is a flat element, one end of which is in the form of a carrying handle and the other end of which is in the form of a hanging hook. Two identical hanger elements each having such a rotatable element are fastened one on each side of the carrier bag. Manufacture is relatively complicated because of those rotatable elements.

DE-U-1 912 148 discloses a hanging hook for carrier bags that passes through two openings on the opposite edges of the carrier bag.

The problem underlying the invention is to construct the hanger body so that it can be provided, in simple manner, with a hanging hook and so that entanglement of the hanging hooks of hanger bodies hanging adjacent to one another can be avoided.

The problem is solved or mitigated according to the invention in that the flat elements are not connected to one another in the region above the handle aperture so that a hanging hook can be inserted between the flat elements from above and the lower end of the hanging hook can be hooked in at the edge of the handle aperture.

As a result of the fact that the hanging hook lies substantially between the flat elements and only the second flat element engages around the outside, the hanging hooks of adjacent clothes hangers do not touch one another and become entangled with one another.

Preferably the two flat elements of the hanger element are made from a single cut-out which is folded over along the shoulder line of the hanger body, the shoulder lines being separated by a central collar region in which the two flat elements are not connected so that the hanging hook can be inserted at the collar region. Owing to the folding over of the cut-out along the shoulder lines, sharp upwardly projecting edges are avoided in simple manner. It is not necessary to cover the edges along the shoulder line with adhesive strips or cr6pe strips.

During manufacture of the hanger element from a single cut-out, the first flat element is preferably continuous and the second flat element is divided, each of the pieces being appended from one of the folded-over regions extending along the shoulder lines of the first hanger element. Since the two shoulder lines fall away to the outside, the second flat element is divided so that the hanger element can be produced by folding a single cut-out. Preferably the dividing line runs vertically in the centre of the hanger element beyond the handle aperture. Since the regions of the second flat element above the handle aperture are not connected to the first flat element, those regions can be lifted away from the first flat element, so enabling insertion of the hanging hook. The hanging hook advantageously has a widened base having a wide upwardly curved insertion slot which engages the two regions of the second flat element that can be lifted away.

Although the clothes hanger according to the invention can be used as a simple clothes hanger, it is, however, especially suitable for a clothes hanger/carrier bag combination, which is referred to hereinafter as a hanger bag.

The hanger bag according to the invention consists of a sack-shaped bag element having an elongate upper opening, similar to a customary carrier bag or shopping bag. The hanger bag also has two hanger elements, the first hanger element being a hanger body as described above. The first hanger element is attached, for example by adhesion, along one edge of the opening of the bag element. The second hanger element is attached, for example also firmly secured adhesively, to the opposite edge of the opening of the bag element. The second hanger element advantageously consists of a single flat element and in outline and in the position of the handle aperture is in register with the first hanger element. The hanging hook holds the two hanger elements together so that the hanger bag is closed.

The two flat elements of the first hanger element are preferably manufactured from a single cut-out and the second hanger element is manufactured from a further cut-out, in each case from thick cardboard. The manufacture of the clothes hanger is, as a result, very simple since only cardboard cut-outs have to be manufactured and one cut-out folded and secured adhesively. The secure adhesion of the two hanger elements to the two side edges of the opening of the bag element is also a simple process.

The hanging hook preferably consists of a piece of wire having a straight shank and a bent hook element at the top, and of a widened base attached to the lower end of the shank. The widened base can also be made by bending the wire element. Preferably the base consists of a triangularshaped sheet metal piece, the tip of which points upwards, the shank being fastened to that tip by spot welding. The base line of the base extends horizontally and a cut-out quadrant section inside the base spans virtually the entire base line. The region inside the cut-out quadrant section is displaced slightly relatively to the plane of the remainder of the base and at its upper end is provided with a slightly outwardly curved insertion lip. The hanging hook is pushed through, from above, between the two flat elements of the first hanger element until the insertion lip lies inside the handle aperture. The hanging hook is then pulled upwards, the insertion lip engaging the second flat element of the first hanger element and introducing it into the cut-out quadrant section, holding it securely therein. When both hanger elements are placed against one another, the second hanger element is also held securely in the cut-out section. The hanging hook is also distinguished by especially simple manufacture.

The hanging hook can also be manufactured from plastics, in which case it is advantageously made by injection-moulding.

An embodiment of the invention will be explained hereinafter by way of example with reference to the drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the hanger bag without the hanging hook; Figure 2 shows the hanger bag from the front having a hanging hook inserted, the second hanger element being omitted; Figure 3 shows the cardboard cut-out for the first hanger element; Figure 4 shows the first hanger element in the folded and adhesively secured state; Figure 5 shows the cardboard cut-out for the second hanger element; Figures 6, 7 and 8 show the hanging hook from the front, from above and from the side, Figure 7 showing only the base; Figure 9 shows a different embodiment of the hanging hook; and Figure 10 shows the hanger bag of Fig. 2 in section according to 10 - 10, including the second hanger element.

Figures 1 and 2 show a clothes hanger/carrier bag combination or hanger bag having a hanger body 10 and a bag element 12 secured thereto. The hanger body 10 consists of a first hanger element 16 and a second hanger element 18. Figure 2 shows the hanger bag with a hanging hook 14 held in the hanger body 10.

The first hanger element 16 is manufactured from the cut-out shown in Fig. 3 and consists of a first flat element 20 and two flat pieces 22, 24 appended thereto which together form a second flat element 26. The shape of the first flat element is symmetrical relative to the vertical, having a straight base line 28, and short vertical side lines 30 from the upper ends of which shoulder lines 32 converge upwardly, between which there lies an upwardly curved collar-like arc 34. Located in the centre of the first flat element 20 is a transverse handle aperture 36. Overall, apart from the fact that it does not have the hanging hook and that it additionally has a handle aperture 36, the first flat element 20 is generally in the shape of a clothes hanger.

The flat pieces 22, 24 which together produce the second flat element 26 are attached along the shoulder lines 32. The flat pieces 22, 24 are folded over the shoulder lines 32 so that the flat pieces 22, 24 come to rest against the first flat element 20. For that purpose, a folding line is stamped into the cut-out along the shoulder lines 32.

As can be seen from Figure 4, the two flat pieces 22, 24 make up a second flat element 26 which, apart from the collar region, are in register with the first flat element 20. In the collar region, the collar-like arc 34 of the first flat element 20 extends upwards whilst the two flat pieces 22, 24 have lower lying edges 38 that are curved in the opposite direction. The projecting collar-like arc 34 of the first flat element 20 facilitates insertion of the hanging hook 14, as will be explained in greater detail later. The two flat elements 20, 26 are secured adhesively to one another over their entire surface or at least at their periphery. Only the regions between the handle aperture 36 and the collar-like arc 34 are not adhesively connected to one another, so that at that position the second flat 4 element 26, that is to say the edge regions of the flat pieces 22, 24, can be lifted away from the first flat element 20.

Figure 5 shows the second hanger element 18 which, including the collarlike arc 34, exactly matches the first flat element 20.

According to Figure 6, the hanging hook 14 consists of a hook element 40 and a generally triangular-shaped base 42. The hook element 40 is secured to the tip of the base 42 by spot welding. The base 42 has a horizontal base line 44 and comprises an arcuate cut-out section 46 which spans virtually the entire base line 44. The region 47 of the base 42 below the cut-out section 46 is pushed out from the plane of the base 42. The upper end of that region 47 is bent to form an insertion lip 48. A pressing line 50 is stamped along the bending line. The hook element 40 is made by bending a steel wire of from 3 to 4 mm in diameter and the base 42 consists of a sheet steel plate 1 mm thick.

Figure 9 shows an embodiment of the hanging hook 14 made from plastics by injectionmoulding, in which the hook element 40 and the base 42 are integral with one another.

In order to secure the hanging hook 14 to the hanger body 10, the two hanger elements 16, 18 are placed flat one against the other so that the opening of the bag element 12 is closed. The hanging hook 14 is so positioned that the direction of displacement of the region 47 below the cut-out section 46 and the bend of the insertion lip 48 point towards the second flat element 26 and the hook is then inserted, with the base line 44 foremost, between the two flat elements 20, 26 of the first hanger element 16. This is facilitated by the projecting collar-like arc 34 of the first flat element 20 since the hanging hook 14 only needs to be placed on that collar-like arc 34 and then pushed under the second flat element 26. It is pushed in until the insertion lip 48 lies inside the handle aperture 36. The hanging hook 14 is then retracted and the insertion lip 48 engages the second flat element 26 and the second hanger element 18 (Fig. 10). Both are held securely and slightly clamped in the cut-out section 46. The thickness of the displaced portion of the region 47 below the cut-out section 46 is therefore slightly less than the sum of the material thicknesses of the second flat element 26 and the second hanger element 18. The two regions of the second flat element 26 that are not adhesively secured cannot come apart under the weight of the carrier bag because they are pressed flat by the second hanger element 18.

The handle aperture 36 is delimited by an upper and a lower line 52, 54, parallel with one another, and lateral curved lines 56. In the second flat element 26 of the first hanger element 16 and in the second hanger element 18, the handle aperture 36 is stamped out completely. In the first flat element 20 the material is cut out only along the lower line 54 and the two curved lines 56 so that a handle flap 58 movable about the upper line 52 is produced. On insertion of the hanging hook 14, that flap 58 is not in the way since the first flat element 20 is not engaged by the cut-out section 46 of the hanging hook 14. When the hanger bag is to be used only as a carrier bag without a hanging hook 14, the handle flap 58 is folded up through the handle aperture 36 of the second flat element 26 and of the second hanger element 18. The two hanger elements 16 and 18 are thereby connected to one another and the carrier bag is closed. As a result, the carder bag is also more agreeable to carry since a relatively broad bearing surface is produced at the upper edge of the handle aperture 36 as a result of the folded-over handle flap 58.

The first hanger element 16 can be connected to the hanging hook 14 either on its own or together with the second hanger element 18 and can be used as a clothes hanger without the bag element 12. Upon purchase of the item of clothing, the hanging hook 14 is detached from the hanger body and is placed into the bag element 12 together with the item of clothing purchased. At home, the customer can then insert the hanging hook 14 into the hanger body 10 again or alternatively only into the first hanger element 16 and, as desired, can detach the bag element 12. If the customer does not want the hanging hook 14, it can be returned to the retailer for re-use.

Claims

Claims:

1. A hanger body for a clothes hanger having a first flat hanger element (16) that has a handle aperture (36) and is composed of two flat elements (20, 26) lying flat against one another and connected to one another, wherein the flat elements (20, 26) are not connected to one another in the region above the handle aperture (36) so that a hanging hook (14) can be inserted between the flat elements (20, 26) from above and the lower end of the hanging hook (14) can be hooked in at the edge of the handle aperture (36).

2. A hanger body as claimed in claim 1, wherein the two flat elements (20, 26) of the first hanger element (16) are made of a single cardboard cutout, which is folded over along shoulder lines (32) of the hanger body (10), the shoulder lines (32) being separated by a central collar region (34) in which the two flat elements (20, 26) are not connected to one another so that the hanging hook can be inserted at the collar region.

3. A hanger body as claimed in claim 2, wherein the first flat element (20) of the first hanger element (16) is continuous whilst the second flat element (26) is divided into two flat pieces (22, 24), each of the flat pieces (22, 24) being appended to one of the foldedover regions that extend along the shoulder lines (32) of the hanger body (10).

4. A hanger body as claimed in claim 3, wherein the handle aperture (36) of the first hanger element (16) is located in the centre thereof and the second flat element (26) is divided along the vertical centre of the first hanger element (16) so that the dividing line extends beyond the handle aperture (36).

5. A hanger body as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the two flat elements (20, 26) of the first hanger element (16) are made of thick cardboard.

6. A clothes hanger/carrier bag combination having a sack-shaped bag element (12) that has an elongate upper opening, having a first hanger element (16) in the shape of a hanger body as claimed in any one of claims I to 5, which is attached to the edge of the opening of the bag element, and having a second hanger element (18) attached to the edge of the opening of the bag element (12) opposite to the first hanger element (16).

7. A combination as claimed in claim 6, wherein the second hanger element (18) consists of a single flat element and in outline and in the position of the handle aperture is in register with the first hanger element (16).

8. A combination as claimed in claim 6 or claim 7, wherein second hanger element (118) is made of thick cardboard.

9. A hanging hook for use in conjunction with a hanger body as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 5, having a hook element (40) at an upper end and a widened base (42) at a lower end, wherein the base (42) has a cut-out section (46) that defines an upwardly pointing region (47), the hanging hook arranged to hold the first hanger element (16) in place between the upwardly pointing region (47) and the remainder of the base (42).

10. A hanging hook as claimed in claim 9, wherein the base (42) is generally triangular in shape, the hook element (40) being secured to the tip of the triangle and the base line (44) of the triangle extending horizontally, and the cut-out section (46) is in the shape of an arc and spans virtually the entire base line (44).

11. A hanging hook as claimed in claim 10, wherein the region (47) inside the cut-out section (46) is displaced slightly relative to the plane of the remainder of the base and at the upper end is provided with a slightly outwardly bent insertion lip (48).

12. A hanging hook as claimed in claim 11, wherein the insertion lip (48) is arranged to be inserted into the handle aperture (36) of the hanger body to engage the second flat element (26) of the first hanger element (16).

13. A hanging hook for use in conjunction with a clothes hanger/carrier bag combination as claimed in any one of claims 6 to 8, having a hook element (40) at an upper end and a widened base (42) at a lower end, wherein the base (42) has a cut-out section (46) that defines an upwardly pointing region (47), the first hanger element (16) being held in place between the upwardly pointing region (47) and the remainder of the base (42).

14. A hanging hook according to claim 13, wherein the base (42) is generally triangular in shape, the hook element (40) being secured to the tip of the triangle and the base line (44) of the triangle extending horizontally, and the cut-out section (46) is in the shape of an arc and spans virtually the entire base line (44).

15. A hanging hook according to claim 14, wherein the region (47) inside the cut-out section (46) is displaced slightly relative to the plane of the remainder of the base and at the upper end is provided with a slightly outwardly bent insertion lip (48).

16. A hanging hook as claimed in claim 15, wherein the insertion lip (48) is arranged to be inserted into the handle aperture (36) of the hanger body to engage the second flat element (26) of the first hanger element (16).

17. A hanging hook as claimed in claim 16, wherein the insertion lip (48) is also arranged to engage the second hanger element (18).

18. A hanger body substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to, and as shown in, Figures I to 5 and 10 of the accompanying drawings.

19. A clothes hanger/carrier bag combination substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to, and as shown in, Figures 1 and 2 of the accompanying drawings.

20. A hanging hook substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to, and as shown in, Figures 2 and 6 to 10 of the accompanying drawings.

21. A hanger body/hanging hook combination, substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to, and as shown in, Figures 2 and 10 of the accompanying drawings.

22. A clothes hanger/carrier bag/hanging hook combination substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to, and as shown in, Figure 2 and 10 of the accompanying drawings.