US2974805A

US2974805A - Hanger rod

Info

Publication number: US2974805A
Application number: US767709A
Authority: US
Inventors: John B Brossean
Original assignee: JEB ROD CORP
Current assignee: JEB ROD CORP; JEB-ROD Corp
Priority date: 1958-10-16
Filing date: 1958-10-16
Publication date: 1961-03-14
Anticipated expiration: 1978-03-14

Description

March 14, 1961 J. B. BROSSEAU HANGER ROD Filed Oct. 16. 1958 mN i u ATTYS.

- ENVENTOR. JQHN B. 590555150 @Z,W

ILE:

United States Patent 2,974,805 HANGER ROD John B. Brossean, Oak Park, 111., assignor, by mesne assignments, to Jeb-Rod Corporation, Forest Park, 11]., a corporation of New Mexico Filed Oct. 16, 1958, Ser. No. 767,709

1 Claim. (Cl. 211-1055) The invention relates to an improved rod for supporting clothing, drapes, curtains or other suspendible articles and it is more particularly concerned with a hanger rod adapted for installation between two spaced walls or other upright structures.

One object of the invention is to provide a hanger rod of the above general character embodying dual adjusting means by which its length may be varied, first to fit within an available space between the walls of a closet or other upright surfaces and, secondly, to engage such surfaces and support the rod and a substantial load in a dependable manner without marring the surfaces in any Another object is to provide a hanger rod in which the pressure exerted on the spaced surfaces to support the rod is maintained efiectively even though the length of the rod or the spacing of the surfaces may vary due to temperature or other changes, thus insuring that the rod will remain in place at all times even when supporting a substantial load.

A further object is to provide an improved mechanism for latching a pair of telescoping tubular members in selected positions of longitudinal adjustment.

it is also an object of the invention to provide a longitudinally adjustable hanger rod which is attractive in appearance, which can be manufactured and sold at a relatively low price and which is so simple that it can be installed quickly and easily by the average person without the use of tools and as quickly and easily removed.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be come apparent from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a side elevational view of a hanger rod embodying the features of the invention.

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the rod shown in Figure l.

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary top view of the hanger rod showing details of the mechanism for latching the two telescoping sections of the rod in adjusted positions.

Fig. 4 is a transverse sectional view of the rod taken in a plane substantially on the line 44 of Fig. 2 showing the latch mechanism engaged.

Fig. 5 is a sectional view similar to Fig. 4 showing the latch mechanism released to permit collapse of the telescoping sections.

Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken in a plane substantially on the line 66 of Fig. 2.

While a preferred embodiment of the invention has been shown and will be described in detail herein, this is not intended to limit the invention to the particular form shown. The intention is to cover all modifications and adaptations falling within the spirit and scope of the invention as more broadly or generally characterized in the appended claim.

For purposes of illustration, the invention has been shown in the form of a hanger rod particularly suitable for temporary installation in clothes closets or other rooms having relatively closely spaced upright walls where installation of permanent rods is either undesirable or impractical. To enhance the utility and adaptability of the rod and permit its use between dilferently spaced supporting structures the rod is constructed in two sections 10 and 11 assembled for relative endwise sliding movement. The rod sections 10 and 11, which may be made of metal, plastic or other suitable material, are preferably in the form of tubular members dimensioned for telescoping assembly. In the exemplary embodiment the tubular members are circular in cross section and may conveniently comprise tubes of stainless steel or other suitable metal plated or otherwise finished to present an attractive appearance.

To support the rod between a pair of spaced walls or other upright surfaces, shoes 12 and 13 are mounted at opposite ends of the respective members 10, 11. The shoes preferably comprise rigid plates or discs 14 and 15 presenting flat surfaces of substantial area generally perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the rod assembly. Each shoe is desirably fitted with a cushion or boot 16 of rubber or rubberlike material adapted to afford nonslipping contact with the supporting surface and to prevent mariing of the surface when pressed against it with substantial force.

The supporting shoes are brought approximately into contact with the spaced supporting surfaces between which the rod is to be mounted by relatively sliding the sections or members 10 and 11 endwise. In accordance with one aspect of the invention simple yet eflfective latch means is provided for retaining the rod in extended condition yet permitting quick and easy release and collapse of the rod when it is to be removed. For this purpose the inner member 11 is formed with a series of outwardly opening notches 17 spaced apart uniformly along the member. Each notch may be conveniently formed by cutting a kerf transversely across the wall of the memher to define a stop surface 18. The Wall of the tube at one side of the kerf is pressed in to form a sloping shelf 19.

As the pressure for retaining the rod in installed position is exerted on the shoe carrying end of the rod sec tions, the stop surfaces 18 are faced toward the opposite end of the rod and are preferably undercut slightly so that they slope outwardly from the shoe carrying end. Accordingly, the pressure exerted on the rod in a direction to collapse the sections contributes to the positive locking of the members in extended position as will appear presently.

Latch means including a spring wire latch element 20 is provided on the outer member 10 for cooperation with the stop surfaces 18 to restrain the members against collapsing movement. To accommodate the latch element the member 10 is formed with a transverse slot 21 located adjacent the end of the member remote from the shoe 12. The latch element 20 in its preferred form has a straight central portion 22 adapted to be received in and extend across the slot 21. Opposite end portions 23 of the latch element are bowed inwardly to embrace the wall of the member 10 and the tips of the end portions are bent inwardly to define hooks adapted to engage in a second slot 25 formed in the wall of the member 10 diametrically opposite the slot 21. Due to the spring characteristics of the element, the central portion 22 is yieldably urged into the bottom of the slot 21 but may be sprung outwardly in the slot to release the members without dislodging the hooks 24.

Preferably the slot 21 is cut to a depth approximating the depth of the notches 17 so that the central portion 22 of the latch element when in normal position in its slot is eflfective to engage the stop surfaces 18 adjacent the lower ends of their associated notches. The latch i V 2,974,so

member thus positively blocks the inner tubular member 1 1 against movement relative to the outer member in a collapsing direction. The slope of the surface 18 tends to cam the latch element down into the bottom of the slot and thus provides a positive lock against collapse of the rod. Relative movement of the members in the opposite direction to extend the rod may take place freely as the latch element rides up the inclined shelves 18 of the notches.

To release the latch means for collapsing the rod, it is only necessary to rotate one of the rod members relative to the other to present a normal area of the inner rod below the notch 21. The latching portion 22 of the latch element is thus lifted out of engagement with the stop surfaces and the rod members are freed for movement in a collapsing direction. A suitable index mark 26 is desirably provided on the outer memberto facilitate alinement of the two members for effective latching and releasing. To avoid interference by the latch means when the inner member is initially assembled with the member the end portion of the member 11 is formed to provide a sloping cam surface 27 adapted to ride under and lift the latch element as the members are telescoped together.

As indicated above, the relative endwise adjustment of the tubular members 10 and 11 provides for the initial adjustment of the rod length to fit it between the upright surfaces available for its mounting. Means is provided for further extension of the rod assembly as a whole to press the shoes 12 and 13 against the surfaces with sufiicient force to maintain the rod securely in place and condition it for suspending a relatively heavy load. For this purpose, one of the shoes, in this instance, the shoe 13, is mounted for adjustment axially of the rod assembly. The other shoe may be similarly mounted if desired or it may be rigidly mounted. As shown in Fig. 2, the shoe 12 is so mounted by means of an integrally formed hub 27 adapted to telescope into the end of the member '10 with a tight fit.

In accordance with another aspect of the invention the adjustable mounting of the shoe 13 is constructed and arranged to provide a yieldable connection between the shoe and the rod. This yieldable connection materially helps in adjusting the shoe to exert the required pressure on the supporting surfaces for sustaining the rod under load. It is also advantageous in maintaining eifective holding pressure even though the length of the rod or the spacing of the supporting surfaces may vary somewhat due to temperature or other changes.

To attain the foregoing advantages, the shoe 13 is fixed to the outer end of an elongated member 30 extending into and slidable endwise of the inner member 11. The member 30, which may conveniently comprise a screw threaded bolt, is supported and guided by a cap 31 fitted on the end of the member 11 and having a central aperture 32 for the accommodation of the bolt. A nut 33 is threaded on the projecting end of the bolt and .between the nut and the cap 31 is interposed a relatively strong coiled compression spring 34. As the nut is screwed toward the head of the bolt the spring 34 urges the bolt and shoe 13 outwardly or extends the efiective length of the rod. When the shoe engages the supporting surface or other obstruction, continued turning of the nut compresses the spring and accordingly increases the pressure exerted by the shoe against the surface. This pressure, of course, is transmitted through the rod to the other shoe and in this way the rod is effectively clamped proved hanger rod may be installed very quickly and easily by anyone since installation can be efiected without use of any tools or special fittings. Thus, the rod may be installed between two spaced supporting structures such as walls W and W1 of a room by simply lining up the mark 26 on the outer member 10 with the notches on the inner member 11, placing the shoe 12 against the wall W and pulling out the inner member 11 until the shoe 13 is substantially in contact with the wall WI. The members 10 and 11 are effectively retained in the extended position by the latch element 20 engaging the stop surface 18 .of the nearest notch 17. Final adjustment or extension of the rod assembly is then effected by screwing down the nut 33 to compress the spring 34. The spring may be compressed to develop any reasonable pressure between shoes 12 and 13 against the wall surfaces required to hold the rod and its load in place. Expansion or contraction of the spring compensates for any slight variations in the length of the rod or in the spacing of the surfaces W or W1 due to temperatu're or other changes. The load carrying capacity of the rod is thus efiectively maintained at all times.

Removal of the rod is equally quick and easy. It is only necessary to grasp the two members 10 and 11 and turn one relative to the other through a small angle or less). This releases the latch mechanism and permits the rod to be collapsed. To install the rod between more widely spaced surfaces such as the walls W, W2 the above described procedure is followed. The telescoping rod members 10 and 11 are simply extended the extra distance and final clamping is effected by manipulation of the nut 33.

The improved hanger rod is attractive in appearance and its simple construction permits it to be manufactured and sold at a relatively low price. The walls or other surfaces on which the rod is supported are not marred or marked in any way. The installation requires no special fittings or tools nor does it require any mechanical skill. In other words, the installation can be made quickly and easily by practically anyone. Properly installed, the rod is capable of supporting substantial loads.

I claim as my invention:

An extensible hanger rod comprising, in combination, a pair of elongated tubular members assembled in telescoping relation, said members being relatively movable endwise to adjust the effective length of the rod, cooperating latch elements on said members operative to retain them in adjusted positions, a support shoe mounted on the outer end of one member presenting a substantial contact area transverse to the axis of the rod for frictional engagement with an upright surface, a cap fitted on the outer end of the other tubular member, said cap having a central aperture, an elongated element slidable in said aperture, said element having an enlarged head disposed within the tubular member, a support shoe mounted on the projecting end of said element presenting a substantial contact area transverse to the axis of the rod for frictional engagement with an upright surface spaced from said first mentioned surface, a nut threaded on said element between said cap and said support shoe, a relatively weak compression spring interposed between said cap and the head of said element operative to hold the element and its contact shoe in position while the rod is being installed between said two upright surfaces, and a relatively strong compression spring interposed between said cap and said nut yieldably urging said element and said shoe in a direction to increase the spacing between the shoes and thereby maintain the shoes in friction clamping engagement with the upright surfaces between which the rodis installedQsaid nut being operable to adjust the tension of said strong spring to press the shoe against said surfaces with sufficient force to maintain the rod in position while supporting a substantial load.

p (References on following page) 5 References Cited in the file of this patent 2,376,716

UNITED STATES PATENTS 785,455 Vigie Mar. 21, 1905 833,577 Snyder Oct. 16, 1906 2,199,851 Culver May 7, 1940 64,968

6 Odin May 22, 1945 Jones Nov. 10, 1953 Cornell Apr. 13, 1954 FOREIGN PATENTS