US2817280A - Film hanger - Google Patents

Description

Dec. 24, -1957 w. w. VAUGHAN FILM HANGER Filed Dec. 25, 1955 ATTORNEYS United States Patent Ofiice 2,817,280 Patented Dec. 24, 1957 FILM HANGER Walter W. Vaughan, Durham, N. C.

Application December 23, 1955, Serial No. 555,033

2 Claims. (Cl. 95-100) The present invention relates generally to hangers for film or similar material, and more particularly to a type of hanger which is adapted to support large photographic negatives while they are being developed or dried.

Conventional film hangers are characterized by a plurality of clips, each of which must be manipulated separately when the film is being clamped in position or released. This procedure is awkward and time-consuming, and the film may be subjected to rough handling unless extreme care is used.

To obviate these difiiculties, the present invention has incorporated a single operating member whereby a plurality of clamping members disposed about the frame may be opened or closed.

It is, therefore, a primary object of the present invention to provide a film hanger having convenient and eflicient clamping means whereby film may be readily clamped into position or released, and whereby these operations may be performed with a minimum amount of manipulation.

Another object is to provide a film hanger which will clamp the film securely in a taut position and thereby protect it against any tendency to wrinkle or bend.

Another object is to provide a film hanger whereon film may be readily and accurately positioned before being clamped.

A further object is to provide a film hanger which is light in weight and easy to handle.

A further object is to provide a film hanger which is simple in design, economical to manufacture, and durable In use.

Other objects, features, and advantages will be apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a front elevational view of the film hanger shown here retaining a film in clamped condition, but showing as well in phantom lines the device in open condition;

Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line 33 of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 4 is a similar view showing the device in open condition.

Referring now in detail to the drawings, the film hanger, generally indicated by the numeral 1, is essentially in the form of a rectangular frame having side members 2 and 3, a bottom member 4, and a support bar 5 which constitutes the upper member of the frame. Support bar 5 includes an extension 5' which may be used as a handle. In the preferred form of the invention, a single stiff wire is shaped to form members 2, 3, and 4, and the upper extremities of members 2 and 3 are secured in suitable spaced relation on the main portion 6 of support member 5 by Welding, soldering, or the like. Support member 5 is formed of a strip of sheet metal, and is folded along the upper longitudinal edge thereof to form a flange '7 extending laterally forward from the top of the main portion 6. The upper extremities of members 2 and 3 may be bent inwardly under the flange 7 to provide a more secure connection.

Sheet metal struts 8 and 9 are suitably secured over the frame adjacent the lower corners thereof, extending from the outer portions of member 4 to the lower portions of members 2 and 3, respectively. Similarly, sheet metal tabs 10 and 11 are secured on the upper portions of members 2 and 3, extending inwardly therefrom toward the center of the frame.

A pair of foot members 12 and 13 are secured beneath the outer extremities of member 4 and extend laterly forward to effect stop means whereby a film positioned against the struts 8 and 9 and tabs 10 and 11 can be guided into position.

A wire shaft 14 is rotatably mounted in apertures 15 and 16 which are provided in opposed relation on the foot member 12 and the flange 7 respectively. Caps 17 and 18 at the extremities of shaft 14 serve to keep it in assembled position. The shaft 14, thus mounted, extends parallel to the side member 2, lying a short distance inward and forward therefrom, and may be further supported with respect to said side member by means of one or more bands 19 which are rigidly secured at one end to said side member and extend therefrom to loosely encircle said shaft.

A clamping tab 21 is rigidly mounted at the lower end of shaft 14 and is adapted to cooperate with strut 9 to clamp the edge of a film therebetween upon rotation of said shaft. Similarly, a clamping tab 22 is mounted on the upper portion of shaft 14, being positioned so as to cooperate with tab 10 in order to clamp the film therebetween. Tabs 21 and 22 are mounted in the same plane, so that an appropriate rotation of the shaft 14 will serve to bring both of said tabs into clamping position.

In order to supplement the gripping action of the clamps, gripping means may be employed. For example, in the present instance, holes 23 and 24 are formed in the clamping tabs 21 and 22 respectively, being punched therethrough in such a way as to form protrusions 25 and 26 on the respective undersides of said tabs.

A second shaft 27 is provided in symmetrically opposed relation to shaft 14 and rotatably mounted in opposed apertures 28 and 29 in foot member 13 and flange 7 respectively. The shaft 27, retained in assembled position by caps 30 and 31 at its outer ends, is provided with coplanar clamping tabs 32 and 33 which simultaneously co-operate with strut 9 and tab 11, respectively, upon proper rotation of said shaft. Punch holes 34 and 35 are provided to form protrusions 36 and 37 for gripping purposes. The second shaft is therefore constructed and operated in the manner heretofore described with respect to shaft 14.

To rotate the shaft 14, a small lever 38 is rigidly secured to the upper portion thereof and extends diagonally forward and inward therefrom. A corresponding, but symmetrically opposed, lever 39 is provided on the shaft 27 for rotation thereof.

A circular disk 40 is provided, having an opening 41 in the center thereof whereby said disk may be rotatably mounted upon a bracket 42 by means of a pin 43. The bracket 42 is in turn rigidly secured to main portion 6 of member 5 at a point intermediate the two side members 2 and 3 and extends downward and forward therefrom so that the disk 40 is retained in a position directly between levers 38 and 39.

A pair of sheet metal thumb pieces 44 and 45 are secured to the face of disk 40 to facilitate rotation thereof.

Stiff wires 46 and 47 form an operable connection between the disk 40 and the levers 38 and 39 respectively. Wire 46 is hooked at its outer end through an aperture 48 formed in the lever 38 and extends inward, passing under the thumb piece 44, along the face of the disk 40, and through an aperture 49, formed on the opposite side of said disk. A cap 50 on the inner end of wire 46 retains said wire in assembled relation with respect to aperture 49. Similarly, wire 47 is hooked at one end through an aperture 51 in lever 39, extending inwardly therefrom over the thumb piece 45 and along the face of disk 40 to be secured in an aperture 52 on the opposite side of said disk by means of a cap 53.

Apertures 49 and 52 are disposed at diametrically opposite sides of disk 40 and when the rotation of disk 40 brings both of said apertures into the same horizontal plane, the wires 46 and 47 draw the levers 38 and 39 to their innermost position, bringing clamping tabs 21 and 22 and clamping tabs 32 and 33 into clamping position by rotation of the shafts 14 and 27, as previously described. In this position, the wires 46 and 47 extend past the thumb pieces 44 and 45 and are slightly spaced therefrom. Thus a slight additional counterclockwise rotation of the disk 40 will bring said wires into contact with said thumb pieces in an over-center position, thereby locking the device in clamped position as illustrated by the full lines on Fig. l, by virtue of the tension of said wires.

When disk 40 is rotated approximately 90 in a clock wise direction from the full-line position of Fig. 1, levers 38 and 39 are moved outwardly, thus rotating shafts 14 and 27 until clamping tabs 21, 22, 32 and 33 are in an open position, as best illustrated in Fig. 4.

It will therefore be seen that when the film hanger is in use, the operator need only apply a simple twist to thumb pieces 44 and 45 in order to open the apparatus, whereupon a film may be placed upon the struts 8 and 9 and tabs 10 and 11 and squared up against foot members 12 and 13. Then a single swist in the reverse direction will bring the four clamping tabs 21, 22, 32 and 33 into clamping position at the four corners of the film, and will securely lock the apparatus to provide a firm and taut support for the film.

It is to be understood that while only one form of the invention is disclosed here, many modifications in structure, dimension, and design can be made without departing from the scope of the invention or the spirit of the annexed claims.

I claim:

1. A film hanger, comprising: a frame having side members; a pair of shafts rotatably mounted on said frame adjacent to said side members; a plurality of clamping tabs mounted on each of said shafts and adapted for pivotal movement with respect to said frame upon rotation of said shafts; fixed means mounted on said frame and presenting clamping surfaces adjacent to said side members for cooperation with said tabs whereby material may be clamped between said fixed means and said tabs by pivotal movement of said tabs; levers secured on said shafts for rotation of said shafts; an actuating member mounted on said frame between said levers, said member being mounted for rotation substantially in the plane of said frame; and link means connecting said levers to said actuating member on opposite sides of the point of rotation, whereby rotation of said actuating member actuates said levers to rotate said shafts and eflect pivotal movement of said clamping tabs.

2. A film hanger as defined in claim 1 including locking means comprising pivotal connections between said link means and said actuating member, said connections being so disposed as to permit said link means to assume an over-center position.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 567,596 Kaiser Sept. 15, 1896 793,978 Beidler July 4, 1905 1,361,767 Leiter Dec. 7, 1920 1,666,895 Gollomb Apr. 24, 1928 1,854,931 Gollomb Apr. 19, 1932

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