US3204333A

US3204333A - Method of making a clothes tree

Info

Publication number: US3204333A
Application number: US77674A
Authority: US
Inventors: Glenn E Wise
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1960-12-22
Filing date: 1960-12-22
Publication date: 1965-09-07
Anticipated expiration: 1982-09-07

Description

Sept. 7, 1965 G. E. WISE 3,204,333

METHOD OF MAKING A CLOTHES TREE Filed Dec. 22, 1960 INVENTOR United States Patent 3,204,333 METHOD OF MAKING A CLOTHES TREE Glenn E. Wise, 501 13th St. NW., Washington, DJC. Filed Dec. 22, 1960, Ser. No. 77,674 2 Claims. (Cl. 29475) This invention relates to method for forming a clothes tree from a single piece of tubular material.

The majority of clothes trees now in use are fabricated from several parts, and are made either from wood or metal. The wooden trees, in particular, are found to be unsatisfactory after extended use due to loosening of the various joints of the trees, or due to splitting or warping of the wood. In addition, it has been observed that there is a tendency for at least one or more of the clothesreceiving hooks, which are usually made of cast metal, to break off, thus reducing the clothes-carrying capacity of these wooden clothes trees. The conventional metal clothes trees are normally much longer lived, but, since they are usually composed of several parts, they are expensive to fabricate, and are of considerable weight which adds greatly to the cost of shipping them from the point of production to the point of use.

It is one object of my invention to set forth an economical and simple method of making a metal clothes tree.

Another object of my invention is to set forth a method of making a metal clothes tree which will be of light weight, and sturdy, reliable construction.

Other objects will be apparent from the remainder of this specification and from the drawing.

In the drawings which form a part of this application:

FIGURE 1 is a three-dimensional view showing a single piece of tubular, metallic stock from which my invention is formed;

FIGURE 2 is a three-dimensional view showing the tubular stock piece of FIGURE 1 as it appears after the first step in forming my clothes tree has been accomplished;

FIGURE 3 is a three-dimensional view showing the lower portion of the tubular stock piece of FIGURE 1 as it appears after the second step in forming my clothes tree has been completed;

FIGURE 4 is a three-dimensional view showing the lower portion of the tubular stock piece of FIGURE 1 as it would appear after it has been formed into the base of my clothes tree;

FIGURE 5 is a three-dimensional view showing the upper portion of the tubular stock piece of FIGURE 1 as it would appear after plural clothes-hook forming slits are cut therein; and,

FIGURE 6 shows my completed clothes tree in threedimensional form.

Referring now to the drawings by reference numerals, FIGURE 1 shows an elongated piece of rectangular tubular material designated generally as 1 and composed of sides 2, 3, 4 and 5. Certain steps, to be described, are performed on this piece to for-m a complete clothes tree.

The first operation which is performed on the piece 1 is accomplished by cutting equal length slits into said piece from the lower end thereof upwardly at each of its corners, as at 6 in FIGURE 2. These slits 6 divide the lower portion into four base-forming tabs 7.

The second operation which is performed on piece 1 is accomplished by bending each tab 7 laterally away from the remainder of the piece until each tab forms an angle of or slightly greater than ninety degrees to said remainder. Next the outer portion of each tab is bent upwardly and inwardly, as shown in FIGURE 4, forming base portions 7a and brace portions 7b. The free ends of the brace portions 7b are then welded, or otherwise 3,204,333 Patented Sept. 7, 1%65 bonded to the remainder of piece 1, as at 8, and the base of my clot-hes tree is now complete.

Directing attention now to the end of the tubular piece opposite the base, I form clothesor hanger-receiving hooks thereon in the following manner. First, I made a series of U-shaped slits, one in each face of said tubular piece. The U-shaped slits in alternate faces of said piece are inverted and are of different lengths so that, as seen in FIGURE 5, the U-shaped slit 9 in face 2 is inverted and is longer than the U-shaped upright slit 10 in adjacent face 3. The material left within the several U-shaped slits forms tabs such as long tab :11 and short tab 12, from which 1 form my clothesor hanger-receiving hooks. The next step involves bending each tab into an upper hook portion and a lower hook portion, such as upper hook portions 11a and 12a, and lower hook portions 11b and 12b, which, as seen in FIGURE 6, are formed from tabs 11 and 12 respectively. Hooks are also bent from the tabs formed in faces 4 and 5, and, as seen in FIGURE 6, these books are numbered 13 and 14. The hooks bent from the tabs in faces 2 and 4 are identical, and the hooks formed from the tabs in faces 3 and 5 are also identical. Adjacent hooks, however, are not identical, as seen, due to the inversion and different lengths of alternate tabs as previously described. This inversion is planned so that alternate books will be located at different levels above the base, thus lessening the over-lapping of clothes hung upon my tree, and also, incidentally, providing hooks accessible to both adults and children. Normally, the upper hook portions, such as 11a and 120, would be used as supports for hats, and the lower hooks portions, such as 11b and 1211, would be used as supports for coats, directly, or for hangers upon which coats are, or may be hung. The final step in forming my clothes tree is accomplished by welding, or otherwise bonding, the free ends of the hook forming tabs to the remaining upright portion of piece 1, as seen in FIGURE 6 at 15 and 16.

If desired umbrella-supporting hooks may be formed in the same fashion as was employed for forming the clothesor hanger-receiving hooks. Such umbrella hooks would be located about midway between the base and the lowest clothes-receiving hooks.

Having enumerated the various details of my invention, and having set forth the steps by which I achieve said invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. The method of forming a clothes tree from an elongated piece of rectangular, tubular metallic material comprising the steps of: cutting equal length slits into said piece along each corner of one end thereof; thereby forming four tabs; bending each tab so that it extends away from the remainder of said piece and forms an angle of at least degrees therewith; bending at least the outer half of each tab upwardly and inwardly until its free end lies closely adjacent said remainder; attaching each tab end to said remainder; cutting oppositely oriented U-shaped slits into the alternating sides of said piece near the other end thereof, thereby forming a second set of tabs; bending each of said second set of tabs into clothes- -receiving means; and, attaching the second set of tabs near their free ends to the sides from which they are cut out.

2. The method of forming a clothes tree from an elongated tubular piece of metal comprising the steps of: making cuts in one end of said piece so as to provide first tab means; bending said tab means into base means having a plurality of free ends; bonding said free ends to said piece; cutting second tab means from the other end of said piece; bending said second tab means into clothes-supporting means having a plurality of free ends; and, welding the free ends of said clothes-supporting 3 4 means to said piece at locations which are spaced from 1,969,716 8/34 Cohen 211-33 the locations at which the free ends of the first tab means 2,107,640 2/38 Magnuso'n 211-1 are bonded to said piece. 2,825,962 3/58 Brown 29-548 References Cited by the Examiner 5 FOREIGN PATENTS UNITED STATES PATENTS 20,213 A.D./98 Great Britain.

780,082 1/05 Whitman 211-1 1 595 5 4 2 Neuhaus 2'9 533 X WHITMORE A. WILTZ, Primary Examiner. 1,674,661 6/28 Pleister 29-548 10 CLAUDE A. LEROY, NEDWIN BERGER, JOHN F, 1,886,752 11/32 Stansberry 21133 CAMPBELL, Examiners.

Claims

1. THE METHOD OF FORMING A CLOTHES TREE FROM AN ELONGATED PIECE OF RECTANGULAR, TUBULAR METALLIC MATERIAL COMPRISING THE STEPS OF: CUTTING EQUAL LENGTH SLITS INTO SAID PIECE ALONG EACH CORNER OF ONE END THEREOF; THEREBY FORMING FOUR TABS; BENDING EACH TAB SO THAT IT EXTENDS AWAY FROM THE REMAINDER OF SAID PIECE AND FORMS AN ANGLE OF AT LEAST 90 DEGREES THEREWITH; BENDING AT LEAST THE OUTER HALF OF EACH TAB UPWARDLY AND INWARDLY UNTIL ITS FREE END LIES CLOSELY ADJACENT SAID REMAINDER; ATTACHING EACH TAB END TO SAID REMAINDER; CUTTING OPPOSITELY ORIENTED U-SHAPED SLITS INTO THE ALTERNATING SIDES OF SAID PIECE NEAR THE OTHER END THEREOF, THEREBY FORMING A SECOND SET OF TABS; BENDING EACH OF SAID SECOND SET OF TABS INTO CLOTHESRECEIVING MEANS; AND, ATTACHING THE SECOND SET OF TABS