US1283136A - Non-tangling device for flags. - Google Patents

Description

.l. B. FOULKES.

NON-TANGLING DEVICE FOR FLAGS.

APPLICATION EILED lULY 3. I917.

1,283,136. Patented ()t. 29, 1918.

A TTORNEYS.

IT ET M 11mm NON-TANGLING DEVICE FOR FLAGS.

Application filed July 3,

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, JOHN B. FoULKEs, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Utica, in the county of Oneida and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Non- Tangling Devices for Flags; and I do here by declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, which .will enable others skilled in the artto which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and tothe reference-numerals marked thereon, which form part of this specification.

My present invention relates to a nontangling device for flags, banners and the like.

The purpose of my invention is to provide a new and improved form of non-tangling device for flags and particularly to provide a device that is simple in construction and readily adapted to be applied to a great variety of flags and banners.

A further purpose is to provide an article which is so simple that it may be made and sold atvery small price whereby the article may be used even where economy has to be considered.

A further purposeof myinvention is to provide an article that is of such construction that although the flag is prevented from tangling 0r wrapping itself about the flag staff yet the flag-is not positively connected to any partof the'de'vice except at the staff edge binding or gromet of the flag thus allowingthe flag to fly or hang in an entirely natural position and relieving the flag from the strain that arises when any of the waving part of the flag is fastened to a rigid or semi-rigid part of a nonrtangling device.

A further purpose of my invention is to provide an article of the class described that may be used either with fiagswhich are permanently secured in position upon their staff or with flags that are movable longitudinally of their .stafir A still further purpose of my present invention is to provide an article of such form, construction and material that it may be readily made of ordinary wire or small metal rod material without the use of any special parts in the device and without requiring elaborate machinery or skilled Workmen in its manufacture.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 29, 1918. 1917. Serial No. 178,4L40.

A further purpose of my invention is to provide a non-tangling device of such form and cooperation with the flag and pole that one device will be sufficient for an ordinary flag and yet two or more may be used upon larger sizes of flags Without interfering with each other or injuring the flag.

A still further purpose of my invention is to provide a device that may be and preferably will be positioned intermediate the width ofthe flagvand yet will not prevent the fiagbeing spaced the ordinary distance from the pole at that point whereby the natural appearance of the flag is maintained and thepresence of the device is rendered unnoticeable.

Further purposes and advantages of my invention will appear from the specification and claims hereinafter set forth.

Figure 1 is a side view of a flag upon a staff equipped with a device embodying my invention.

Fig. 2 is a sectional view on scale on line 22 of Fig. 1. d

Fig. 3 is a similar sectional view but upon a still larger scale of the staff end of the device and adjacent part of the flag and stafi.

Fig. 4: is a sideelevation of the parts shown in Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 shows my device applied to a flag and stafi where the flag is fixedly secured to the staff.

Referring to the drawings in a more particular description, and first to Figs. 1 and 4, it will beseen that I have shown a flag 6 mounted upon a flag-staff or pole 7 so as to be moved longitudinally thereof in the ordinary way as by means of the halyards 8 being secured to the staff edge border or gromet 9 of the flag and with said halyards running through the usual eyes 10 in the button or truck 11 at the outer end of the staff 7, with the halyards fastened in any desired way at the base end of the staff as to an ear 12.

My non-tangling flag device comprises an elongated U-shaped member 13 conveniently and preferably composed of wire or metal mlOd or other material similarly adapted to be readily formed into desired shape and maintain its shape in use. This U-shaped member is loosely mounted upon the staff 7 so as to swing or rotate thereon as required when the flag swings or rotates. l/Vhere as in an enlarged the construction shown in Figs. 1 to 4: the

flag is to be moved longitudinally of the flag-staff the U-shaped member. will also slide or move longitudinally of the fiag stafi with and as the flag is moved. A convenient form of thus mounting the member 13 upon the flag-staff is to provide a loop 1 f surrounding the flag-staff and fitting sufficiently loose thereupon so as to freely swing upon and move longitudinally of the staff and yet sufficiently tight to make thearms 15 and 16 of the U-shaped member extend out from the flag-staff 7 at about right angles to the staff.

The elongated arms 15 and 16 of the U- shaped member 13 start from said member 13 at. a point close to the staff and then spread out from each other a short distance and then extend outward from the staff in substantially the same direction and parallel or nearly parallel to each other, providing a long open-ended slot 17 between said arms. The device is mounted upon the staff with the arms 15 and 16 upon opposite sides of the flag 6 or in other words the arms of the device straddle the flag from the staff edge of the flag outward to the desired extent.

The outer ends of the arms are provided with means for preventing the said arms from puncturing or tearing or wearing the flag, said means being a suflicientfenlargement of some sort, a convenient and the preferable means as shown in the drawings being to have a loop or eye 18 formed upon the outer ends of the arms 15 and 16, said loops being positioned flatwise to the flag.

The device is mounted so as to be positioned relative to the flag about midway the width of the flag as indicated in Fig. 1. For ordinary sized flags one of my devices is sufficient to prevent the flag becoming wrapped about the staff or becoming tangled or snarled upon itself, the halyards or the staff. Where desired, however, as upon very large flags two or more of my devices may be used, being spaced across the width of the flag as desired. Where only one of my devices is used with a flag it will be preferably located about midway of the width of the flag, but this position maybe varied considerably without impairing the efficiency of the device. It is important, however, that the device be mounted intermediate the staff edge corners of the device instead of too near either of the longitudinal edges of the flag. In order to hold the device in proper position relative to the width of the flag, means are provided to loosely connect the base of the elongated U-shaped member to the adjacent part of the staff edge of the flag. As such means I have shown a double hooked member 19, having one hook 20 hooked into an opening 21 conveniently provided upon the base of the U-shaped member and the other hook 22 engaging an eye provided in the staff edge binding 9 of the flag. Obviously a string or cord may be used as such connecting means in place of the hook mentioned.

It will now be seen that while the base of the U-shaped member is loosely mounted upon the staff and said base loosely consaid"' ar1ns 15 and 16 will )revcnt the fla from folding back closely upon the pole.

Where the arms are about half the length of' the flag the outer end of the flag will not wrap about the pole at all. lVhere the arms are a little less than half the length of the flag the end of the flag maytouch the staff and loosely fold over the staff, but not to an extent sufficient to let the flag get tangled. The slight touching of the outer end of the staff will add to the natural appearance and freedom of the flag, but the end thus overturned will at-once free itself from the staff. Although the device is very loosely connected to the flag-its relation 'to'the staff is such that the arms of the device will extend outjfrom thestaif at about right angles to the staff on opposite sides of the flag as indicated in Fig l orthe outer end may swing quite a few degrees with the base of the U- shaped member maintaining its position. The arms, however, will not vary from their middle position relative to the flag enough to interfere with the effectiveness of the device. In this way the device is always kept straddling about the middle part of the flag and does not project beyond either of its longitudinal edgesnor its edge opposite the staff edge of the flag. As the flag is not connected to the device except at the gromet or staff edge binding where'there is no strain, it will be seen that the flag while held generally in the outspread position seen, is not subjected to any strain or tension or wear. The flag can draw in or out or up or down through the openended slot 17 without interference or strain upon the flag. It will be seen especially that'the longitudinal edges of the flag are entirely free from any restraint and thusmay wave in an entirely natural manner.

The presence of. the halyards or other means for fastening the flag to the staff will ordinarily prevent any tendency of the flag and the device to, make a complete rotation upon the staff. Should such complete rota-.

tion take place, however, the flag will soon rotate back to normal position, as the nontangling device here shown prevents the flag from becoming wrapped upon the pole, thus leaving it free to rotate back to normal position and the halyards will usually add a slight tension, which will expedite such re turn movement.

While my invention is particularly intended for use upon flags that are mounted with their staff in horizontal or nearly horizontal position, as that is the class of flags that are most apt to become tangled, my device is entirely applicable upon flags that have their poles set at a much greater angle to the horizontal plane than shown in Fig. l and may in fact be used, if desired, upon poles that arevertical.

My device may be moved out and back upon the staff as the flag is put out or withdrawn, since the eye 14 may freely travel upon the staff 7 and the double hook 20 or other fastening means connecting the flag to my device communicates movement imparted to the'fiag by the halyards to the device and so moves the halyards with the fla In the drawings I have shown a convenient and the preferred form of making the main part of my device out of a single piece of wire or metal rod. The said wire or rod is bent about to-form the staff-inclosing loop 14 and then given a complete twist to make said loop permanent and incidentally to provide the eye 21 to receive the hook 20 or other fastening means used to connect the U-shaped member to the flag. From this point the arms 15 and 16 separate the proper distance to receive the flag and then continuing outward parallel or slightly di verging from each other as shown in Figs. 2 and 8. The eyes 18 at the end of each arm are formed by bending the wire or rod into the desired eye or other enlargement as indicated.

Fig. 5 shows on a small scale a flag permanently fastened to a staff and equipped with one of my devices. For smaller or cheaper flags used in great numbers for decorative purposes the flags are permanently secured to the staff as by being tacked to the stafl or inclosed in a longitudinal slot in the staff. For flags of this construction my device is mounted upon the staff preferably at the time the flag is secured thereto, with the arms straddling the flag as before mentioned.

It will be obvious that modifications may be made in the construction, arrangement and proportions of my device without departing from the claims hereinafter set forth.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a non-tangling device for flags, the combination with a flag and a pole, of a member loosely mounted on the pole and provided with two arms extending outward from the pole approximately in the same direction but spaced apart from each other and on opposite sides of the flag whereby the flag is loosely held between the said arms.

2. A non-tangling device for use with a flag on a pole comprising an elongated U shaped member, loosely mounted at its base on the pole with its arms loosely straddling the flag intermediate its width.

3. A non-tangling device for use with a flag on a pole comprising an elongated U- shaped member, loosely mounted at its base on the pole with its arms loosely straddling the flag intermediate its width and extendiling out about half way of the length of the 4. A non-tangling device for use with a flag on a pole comprising an elongated U- shaped member, loosely mounted at its base on the pole with its arms loosely straddling the flag intermediate its width and means connecting the base of the member to the adjacent edge of the flag whereby the U shaped member is held in .place longitudinally of the staff edge of the flag.

5. In combination with a flag mounted on a pole to be moved longitudinally thereof, a non-tangling device comprising an elongated Ushaped member mounted at its base to swing upon and move longitudinally of the pole and having its arms loosely straddling the flag and means connecting the base of the U-shaped member to the flag intermediate its stafi edge corners whereby the U-shaped member is held in position relative to the flag and will be moved therewith longitudinally of the pole.

6. In a device of the character described, a supporting pole, a flag and a guard pivotally mounted upon the pole and adapted to straddle the flag intermediate its edges.

7. In a device of the character described, a supporting pole, a guard made of a single piece of wire bent in the form of a loop at the top for attachment to the pole and having depending forks adapted to straddle the flag.

In witness whereof I have affixed my signature this 30th day of June, 1917.

JOHN B. FOULKESQ Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, I). 0.

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