GB2520333A

GB2520333A - A hook for a garment hanger

Info

Publication number: GB2520333A
Application number: GB1320337.7A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Michael Edward Jones
Original assignee: Mainetti UK Ltd
Current assignee: Mainetti UK Ltd
Priority date: 2013-11-18
Filing date: 2013-11-18
Publication date: 2015-05-20
Anticipated expiration: 2033-11-18
Also published as: GB2520333B; GB201320337D0; GB201600783D0; GB2536540A; WO2015071687A1

Abstract

A metal hook 20 for use in a garment hanger comprises an insertion portion 28 which is inserted into the plastic body portion of a hanger and a curved portion 26 for engaging a rail. A linear portion 32 extends between the insertion portion and the curved portion and a retaining portion 34 is located on the linear portion. The retaining portion has a cross-section greater than the average cross-section of the linear portion and tapers towards the curved portion. In use, the metal hook is especially suited for use with a size market having a pair of protrusions that engage with the retaining portion so as to hold the size marker in place on the metal hook.

Description

A Hook for a Garment Hanger The present invention relates to a hook for a garment hanger, and relates particularly, but not exclusively, to a hook for a garment hanger where the hanger is to be used with automated garment distribution systems.

It is well known to use size markers on garment hangers to indicate the size of the garment hung thereon or to provide other information that may be of interest to a potential purchaser. An example of a size marker, which is commonly used with a hanger having a metal hook, is shown in figure 1 and is of a type disclosed in UK patent number GB1397413. This type of size marker 10 is added to the hook 12 of the hanger 14 by sliding it along the length of the hook. An alternative form of size marker is shown in UK patent application publication number GB2091796 and this type of size marker is attached to the hanger by sliding the hook through an opening in one side of size marker.

In recent years garments are more commonly transported on hangers from the country where they are manufactured to retail stores around the world. The distribution centres used for this industry have become more sophisticated and automated garment handling machines process garments at higher speeds to reduce costs. One problem that has resulted from this is that size markers, of the type described above, tend to ride up the metal hook of the hanger (as illustrated in figure 2) and interfere with the distribution system mechanisms causing to jam up which is costly and time-consuming to rectify. Size markers attempting to address this problem on hangers with plastic hooks are already known in, for example, US 2012/0181309. A similar system for addressing this problem in hangers with metal hooks can be seen in US 2012/0006204. Such systems have the disadvantage that they require the redesign of the hanger body making these size markers unsuitable for use with existing hanger body moulds or tools. Furthermore, the hangers are only suitable for use with a single type of size marker and are aesthetically less satisfactory if used without the size marker.

Preferred embodiments of the present invention seek to overcome the above described disadvantages of the prior art.

According to an aspect of the present invention there is provided a metal hook for use in a garment hanger, including a hook and a body formed from at least one plastic material and having said hook inserted therein, the hook comprising a wire formed into portions including:-a non-linear portion for engagement with a support when the garment hanger is in use; an insertion portion for insertion into the body of the garment hanger; a linear portion extending between said insertion portion and said non-linear portion; and a retaining portion, located partially along said linear portion, and having a cross-section having at least one dimension greater than average cross-section of said linear portion and tapering towards said non-linear portion.

By having a hook with a retaining portion that is larger than the diameter of the cross-section of the wire and tapers away from the body of the hanger, the advantage is provided that a standard size marker and standard hanger body can be used in combination with this new hook and can be used on any automated garment distribution system without risk of the size marker entangling the distribution system mechanisms. As a result, existing hanger designs can be used in combination with this new hook without requiring a new mould or tool to be formed from the hanger bodies.

Furthermore, the taper allows existing size markers to easily be inserted onto the hook and is sufficiently wide to prevent the size marker being accidentally removed. At the same time however, it also allows the size marker to be removed if required by the application of a suitable tool or by the application of sufficient force by hand to the size marker to pass it over the rib formed by the retaining portion. Where a size marker is used that requires a tool for it to be removed from engagement with the retaining portion, the advantage is provided that this so-called childproof size marker can now be used with a range of hanger bodies that previously could not be provided with a childproof size marker by simply changing the hook to that described above.

It is also the case that the hook described above can be used with existing automated hook insertion machines that are used in the production of garment hangers. It is commonly the case that in the production of garment hangers automated machines are used to insert the hook into the hanger body. Such machines receive large numbers of hooks in a hopper which, together with other mechanisms, is used to align the hooks in preparation for insertion into the hanger -4-.

body. This hopper in combination with the other mechanisms is tuned to work with a standard metal hook and variations in the shape of the hook can cause significant problems to these mechanisms. The hook of the present invention does not interfere with the hopper and feed mechanisms resulting in very little alteration to existing garment hanger production being required to provide hangers with the benefit of the advantages of the present invention described above.

In a prcfcrrcd cmbodimcnt thc retaining portion is frustoconical.

By providing a frustoconical retaining portion, the advantage is provided that the size marker is easily slid over the retaining portion in one direction and is sufficiently difficult to move in the other direction to prevent accidental removal of size marker whilst still allowing deliberate removal of the size marker.

In another preferred embodiment the retaining portion is formed from the same metal forming said hook.

By forming the retaining portion in the metal that forms the wire hook, the advantage is provided that the retaining portion is easily formed in the wire manipulation process that creates the hook.

According to another aspect of the present invention there is provided a garment hanger comprising a plastic body and a hook as set out above.

According to a further aspect of the present invention there is provided a size marker for use with a garment hanger as set out above, the size marker comprising:--a body portion having a pair of apertures and at least one wall extending therebetween, the wall having at least one external surface adapted to display information and the apertures are adapted to allow the size market pass over a hook of the garment hanger; and a plurality of protrusions including at least one first protrusion extending from said wall and adapted to engage the hook at a first height relative to one of said apertures and at least one second protrusion extending from said wall and adapted to engage the hook at a second height relative to said one of said apertures.

By having a size marker with protrusions that extend from the wall of the size marker and engage the linear portion of a hook at different heights, the advantage is provided that the size marker can be used with a hook of the type described above. When used with a hook having a retaining portion of type the size marker is able to partially obscure the retaining portion whilst the size market is retained more securely and stably than size markers of the prior art. In particular, the size marker is much less able to move in any direction, especially unable to rotate or wiggle about an axis perpendicular to the axis of the linear portion of the hook. Furthermore, the size marker of the type described above can be provided such that the protrusions can resist a removal force sufficiently that the size marker can be regarded as being childproof and preferably requires a tool to assist with the removal of the size marker from the hanger. As a result, an existing mould or tool for a hanger body which was not previously designed to receive a childproof size marker can be converted to being childproof by the simple addition of the hook of the present invention and the size marker described above.

Preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by way of example only, and not in any limitative sense, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:-Figure 1 is a perspective view of a hanger, size marker

and hook of the prior art;

Figure 2 is a perspective view of a series of hangers of figure 1 in use; Figure 3 is a front view of a hook of the present invention; Figure 4 is a front view of the hook of figure 3 in use in a garment hanger; Figures 5 and 6 are front and perspective views of the hanger of figure for including a size marker; Figure 7 is a perspective view of a size marker of the present invention; and Figures 8, 9 and 10 are sectional, front and perspective views of the size marker of figure 7 in use with the hanger of figure 4.

Referring to figures 3 and 4, a hook 20 is for use in a garment hanger 22. The garment hanger 22 has a body 24, formed from at least one plastic material for example polystyrene or polypropylene and has the hook 20 inserted therein. The hook 20 is formed from a piece of wire which is bent and formed into the shape shown in figure 3. The hook can be divided into a series of portions including a non-linear or curved portion 26. The curved portion shown in figure 3 is typical of metal hooked hangers but it will be apparent to persons skilled in the art that any suitably shaped non-linear portion that can fulfil the requirement of engaging the support, typically a rail or hook onto which the hanger is hung when in use, will be suitable and such persons will be familiar with these shapes.

The hook 20 also has an insertion portion 28 which is inserted into and hidden in the plastic of the body 24. This insertion normally takes place by heating at least the insertion portion 28 of the hook 20 to a temperature that can melt the plastic of the hanger body 24, inserting the hot insertion portion into an aperture formed in hanger body 24 causing the plastic on the inside of the aperture to melt into engagement and form around the ribs 30 that are formed in insertion portion 28. Like this one, other techniques for bringing together the insertion portion 28 of hook 20 and the body 24 will be familiar to persons skilled in the art.

The hook further has a linear portion 32 that extends between the curved portion 26 and insertion portion 28.

Located partially along the linear portion 32 there is formed a retaining portion 34. The retaining portion 34 is frustoconical in its shape having a first end 36 that has a cross-section that has at least one dimension greater than the average cross-section of the linear portion 32 and tapers towards a second end 38 that has a cross-section substantially the same as the cross-section of the linear portion 32.

Although frustoconical is *the preferred shape for the retaining portion 34, other shapes are also suitable. For example, a truncated pyramidal portion would operate in a similar manner to the frustoconical portion desbribed above.

Likewise, a trapezoidal portion would also fulfil the requirements of this invention. This trapezoidal portion would have the same cross-section has the frustoconical portion when the linear portion was cut axially at a first angle but at a second angle, perpendicular to the first angle, the cross-section would appear the same as the remainder of the linear portion 32, Referring to figures 5 and 6, the hanger 22, incorporating hook 20 is shown in use with the size marker 10 of the prior art. The size marker 10 has an aperture 40 that is sized to have approximately the same diameter as the diameter of the cross-section of the wire used to form hook 20. The size marker 10 also has four cuts 42 that allow slight deflection of the tabs formed between these cuts that are provided to allow the size marker 10 to pass over a ball end 44 that is formed in the distal end of hook 20. The ball end 44 is larger in diameter than the diameter of the cross-section of the wire used to form hook 20. When used in the present invention these tabs that are formed between the cuts 42 also allow slight deflection of the tabs to allow the size marker to pass over the wider first end 36 of the retaining portion 34.

Referring to figures 7 to 10, an alternative size marker 50 of the present invention is shown in figure 7 and is shown in use on the hanger 22 in figures 8 to 10. The size marker 50 has a body portion 52 that has a pair of apertures 54 and 56 formed therein. When the size marker 50 is in use on hanger 24 and that hanger is hung from a rail, the first aperture 54 is located at the top of the size marker and the second aperture 56 is at the bottom of the size marker. A wall 58 extends between these apertures 54 and 56 and an external surface of the wall 58 is adapted to have display information thereon, for example the "M" seen in figures 9 and 10. The wall 58 is formed, in this example, from four wall sections 60, 62, 64 and 66. Two of the wall sections, labelled 60 and 62, are substantially trapezoidal in shape and are adapted to be aligned, when the size marker is in use on hanger 22, with the front and rear surfaces of the hanger. The other wall sections, labelled 64 and 66 are substantially rectangular, although slightly curved as seen in figure 8, and join the angled edges of the wall sections 60 and 62.

Extending inwardly across aperture 54 from the upper edge of wall portion 60, 62 are first protrusions 68 and 70.

The upper face of the protrusions 68 and 70 does not extend into aperture 54 and as a result the distal ends of protrusions 68 and 70, when engaged with the hook 20, engage the hook at a first location that is at a first height above the hanger body 24. Also extending inwardly, but in this case from the upper edge of wall portions 64 and 66, are second protrusions 72 and 74. These protrusions are angled downwards, that is away from the first aperture, and therefore when they engage hook 20 they do so at a second location that is at a second height above the hanger body 24.

The first and second locations, and therefore the first and second heights, are different which assists with the stability of the size marker 50 when it is in use. It is worth noting that the size marker 50 is taller than the size marker 10 since the wall 58 extends above the bottom, or first end 36, of retaining portion 34 of hook 20.

When size marker 50 is used it is slid over hook 20 with the second aperture 56 passing over the ball end 44 of hook 20 first. As the bottom edge of wall 58 engages hanger body 24, the distal ends of protrusions 72 and 74 extend over retaining portion 34 and click into place under the first end 36 of the retaining portion. The second protrusions 72 and 74, being longer than the first protrusions 68 and 70, are able to flex as they extend over the retaining portion 34. Because the first protrusions 68 and 70 are higher up the linear portion 32 of hook 20 and only part of the way along the widening taper of the retaining portion 34, they do not need to flex and can be shorter. The shape of the size marker, in particular its width (the long edges of trapezoidal wall portions 60 and 62) allow part of the curved portion of the body 24 of the hanger to extend slightly into the second aperture 56, together with the different locations of the engagement of the first and second protrusions with the hook 20, result in the size marker 50 being securely and stably engaged with the hanger.

The size marker 50 is designed to be childproof and it is preferable that protrusions 72 and 74 apply sufficient force to the first end 36 of retaining portion 34 that the size marker cannot be removed without either applying more force than it is normal for a child to apply or by using a tool. An example of such a tool would have a pair of pins -"-that engage protrusions 72 and 74 pushing them away from engagement with the hook 20 and thereby allowing the size marker to pass over the retaining portion 34.

It will be appreciated by person skilled in the art that the above embodiments have been described by way of example only and not in any limitative sense, and that various alterations and modification are possible without departure from the scope of protection which is define by the appended claims. For example, the size marker used in conjunction with the hook of the present application can be of the type described in 0B2091796. Furthermore, the size marker shown in figures 7 to 10 can be modified to have an opening in one of the wall sections (preferably 64 or 66) allowing the size marker to be engaged with the hook in a manner similar to that described for the size marker disclosed in GB2091796.

Claims

Claims 1. A metal hook for use in a garment hanger, including a hook and a body formed from at least one plastic material and having said hook inserted therein, the hook comprising a wire formed into portions including:-a non-linear portion for engagement with a support when the garment hanger is in use; an insertion portion for insertion into the body of the garment hanger; a linear portion extending between said insertion portion and said non-linear portion; and a retaining portion, located partially along said linear portion, and having a cross-section having at least one dimension greater than average cross-section of said linear portion and tapering towards said non-linear portion.
2. A hook according to claim 1, wherein said retaining portion is frustoconical.
3. A hook according to claim 1, wherein said retaining portion is formed from the same metal forming said hook.
4. A metal hook for use in a garment hanger, including a hook and a body formed from at least one plastic material and having said hook inserted therein substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to Figures 3 to 10 of the accompanying drawings.
5. A garment hanger comprising a plastic body and a hook according to any of the preceding claims.
6. A size marker for use with a garment hanger according to claim 5, the size marker comprising:-a body portion having a pair of apertures and at least one wall extending therebetween, the wall having at least one external surface adapted to display information and the apertures are adaptod to allow the size market pass over a hook of the garment hanger; and a plurality of protrusions including at least one first protrusion extending from said wall and adapted to engage the hook at a first height relative to one of said apertures and at least one second protrusion extending from said wall and adapted to engage the hook at a second height relative to said one of said apertures.