Garment hanger

Aug. 5, 1947.

2,425,241

R. R. HAWKINS

GARMENT HANGER

Filed March 8, 1944

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Patented Aug. 5, 1947

2,425,241

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE

2,425,241

GARMENT HANGER

Reginald R. Hawkins, Tuckahoe, N. Y.

Application March 8, 1944, Serial No. 525,503

Claims.

This invention relates to new and useful improvements in garment hangers.

An object of the invention is to· provide a garment hanger in which the supported garments will not be wrinkled or creased or have marks left on them by the elements of the hangers.

Another object of the invention is to provide a simple, efficient hanger which is easily opened and closed.

Still another object is to provide a hanger which is ordinarily self closing but which can be positively closed and locked when, supporting an extra heavy load of garments.

Yet another object of the invention is to provide a simple, and efficient hanger which can be cheaply manufactured and easily assembled so as to· keep down the costs.

Further and more specific objects, features, and advantages will more clearly appear from a consideration of the specification hereinafter especially when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings which illustrate preferred forms of the invention and which form part of the specification.

Generally speaking, the invention includes a hanger structure in which all the supporting and adjustable clamping wires and elements, except the garment-engaging bars, are disposed outside the area or portion of the bars engaging the clothes.

The invention further includes a structure in which the supporting wires naturally and resiliency are formed to press together and normally grip the garments with sufficient pressure and is provided with an operating element which in normal position is loosely related to· the wires but when moved in one direction can act to spread the wires and release the garments arid when moved in another direction can be caused to engage the wires more definitely and positively to· exert a positive greater-than-normal pressure on the garments.

The invention further includes special features in the construction which permit the hanger to be easily and cheaply manufactured and assembled and which features will more clearly appear from a consideration of the drawings and specifications hereinafter set forth.

Present preferred forms of the invention are set forth in the drawings of which,

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a simplified form of the invention;

Fig. 2 is an elevation of a more improved form;

Fig. 3 is a cross section taken on the line 3—3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a view similar to· Fig. 3, showing the clamping bars spread to· release the garments;

Fig. 5 is an elevation of one end of still another form of the invention;

Fig. 6 is a cross section taken on the line 6—8 of Fig. 5; and, (Cl. 223—96)

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary plan view of adjacent ends of the operating bars.

In hangers of present known types, supporting wires enter the clamping bars at their longitu5 dinal mid-point. The position of these wires causes them to press a portion of the garment when it is bulky, for example, tweed trousers. When the garment is not bulky, the customary sliding lock wire must be pressed or moved fur10 ther along the support wires, with the result that it presses against a portion of the garment and deforms it.

My invention surmounts these difficulties by supporting the clamping bars at the end, thus ₁₅ providing a clear space or area within the area of the bars and wires which is amply sufficient to receive the garments and to support the cuffs or garment parts which are supported above the clamping bars. Also, in a form which employs ₂₀ sliding lock wires, these locks operate on the sup^υ porting wires at both ends of the hangers in positions where they can not come into contact with the garment.

This form of the invention is shown in Fig. 1 _ and comprises two separate wires, one of which, “ 10, has its mid-portion curved upwardly to form a hook 11 for the hanger, and has downwardly bent end portions 12 connected to· the ends of one clamping bar 13. The other supporting wire „0 14 has downwardly bent ends (5 connected to ^υ the ends of the. other clamping bar !6. These clamping bars 13 and ί θ are preferably provided on their inner surfaces with a layer of felt as indicated at IT. The mid-portion of the second „„ supporting wire 14 is twisted as indicated at 18 ⁰ around the other wire 10 adjacent the up-turned hook portion ί ί of that other wire. The pairs of downwardly bent ends of the wires 10 and 14 are connected together by the usual lock wires or links 19 which when moved downwardly will ⁴⁰ draw the end portions (2 and 15 together and therefore draw the bars !3 and IS together to clamp the garments therebetween since the end portions 12 and 15 are formed normally to diverge from each other as they proceed downward. The ⁿ movement of the lock links downwardly will therefore tend to pull the bars together and clamp the garments tightly in place. The contact of the ends 12 and 15 with the bars 13 and 16 are noticed to be entirely outside of the area which ⁵⁰ will be occupied by the garments and therefore they will not come into contact with the garments to· wrinkle or crease or otherwise deform them.

A further form of the invention is shown in

Fig_S. 2, 3, 4, and 7 which is easily opened and closed. Although men usually do not object to operating crude sliding locks found on hangers of the usual commercial type, women with their more tender fingers and nails often find them ⁸⁰ hard to· operate. A modified form herein ob2,425,241 viates these disadvantages. This form, however, is one which is ordinarily self-closing and holding but which may, when necessary to support an extraordinary load or unusually bulky garments, be operated as a positive lock to hold the supporting bars in engagement with the garments under the extraordinary strain. This positive action is achieved through the use of an operating element which can act both as an opening or release device as well as a positive locking device.

This form is shown in the above figures -and comprises a cross bar 20, preferably oval in shape, having recesses adjacent its ends as indicated at 21. A spring wire is coiled as at 22 around the bar 20 in these recesses with opposite ends projecting downwardly as at 23 and 24 and connected to the ends of clamping bars 25 and 28. The form and character of the coiled spring wire is such that the ends normally tend to be urged toward each other and therefore tend to press the clamping bars 25 and 26 toward and into engagement with garments disposed therebetween with sufficient pressure for a normal load of garments. The oval shape of the cross bar 29 will obviously make it unnecessary to fasten the spring coils thereon to keep the bar from turning within the coils. The springs and coils can be spread by a proper tool to slip them over the ends of the bar 20 and into the recesses so that they do not have to be held therein by any special fastening means.

Since the bars 25 and 26 normally are urged toward each other, they can be spread apart to release the garments by means of an operating element which comprises a hand-operated bar 27 having pairs of bayonet slots or apertures 33 at each end through which the wires 23 and 24 are passed in assembling the device. The slots are so disposed and arranged that, once in place and the clamping bars 25 and 26 fastened on the wires 23 and 24, it cannot slip down thereafter.

The operating bar 27 is shown in its normal position and relation to the other elements of the device. Just below the normal position of the bar 27 the end wires 23 and 24 are flared out as at 29 and just below these flared portions the wires are bent at right angles to the flared portions in the form of ears 30 which will prevent the bar 27 from being moved down beyond this point. The upper’ ends of the wires 23 and 24 are flared outwardly and downwardly from the cross bar 20 as shown at 31. The center of the operating bar 27 is provided with a center ridge 32 extending upward somewhat from the rest of the bar. The walls of this center ridge at the slots 28 are sloped as shown in Fig. 3 so that when the element or operating bar 27 is moved upwardly it acts as a wedge to spread out the wires to the position shown in Fig. 4 so that the clothes are definitely released. The bar 27 can be gripped in the hand with the cross bar 20 and lifted by the fingers to release the clothes while the other hand is free to grasp the garments thus released.

When an unusually large load of garments is to be placed between the clamping bars 25 and and 25, the spring pressure inwardly on., the clamping bars 25 and 26 may not be quite strong enough and in this case the operating element is then moved downwardly from the position shown in Fig. 3 so that the bevelled outer walls of the slots 33 may be engaged with the flared faces 31 of the wires 23 and 24 to positively press the wires, and therefore the clamping bars 25 and 26, together more effectively to grasp the garments under these unusual conditions.

The form of the invention shown in Figs. 5 and 6 are quite similar to that shown in Figs. 2, 3, and 4 except that in this case the operating element normally rests upon the projecting ears 30 while the natural resiliency of the wires presses the clamping bars against the clothes. The operating element 34 is connected by a link 35 to wedges 36 disposed below the clamping bars 25 and 26 and when the operating element is drawn upwardly as above described the wedges are moved upwardly to enter wedge-shaped notches 37 in the bottom of the bars to spread the bars and thus in a similar manner release the garments.

While the invention has been described in detail and with respect to several preferred forms which the invention may assume, it is not to be limited to such details and forms since many changes and modifications may be made in the invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention in its broadest aspects. Hence it is desired to cover any and all forms and modifications of the invention which may come within the language or scope of any one or more of the appended claims.