Support for flower-pots

Aug. 20, 1957 a. w. smith 2,803,418

SUPPORT FOR FLOWER-POTS

Filed Nov. 3, 1953 2 Sheets-Sheet 1

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INVENTOR

Arthur W. Smith

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Aug. 20,1957 a. w. smith 2,803,418

SUPPORT FOR FLOWER-POTS

Filed Nov. 3, 1953 2 Sheets-Sheet 2

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FIG. 7

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Arthur W Smith

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' ATTORNEY/

United States Patent Office 2,803,418

Patented Aug. 20, 1957

2,803,418

SUPPORT FOR FLOWER-POTS

Arthur W. Smith, Washington, D. C., assignor, by decree of distribution, to Guileme Mitchell Smith, Washington, D. C.

Application November 3,1953, Serial No. 389,922

Claims. (Cl. 248—153)

This invention relates to holders or anchoring means for preventing the tipping and accidental displacement of flower-pots and the like.

In the use of flower-pots, it is desired in many cases, that the filled flower-pots be secured in such a way that they will not be blown or knocked over, particularly in locations such as on windowsills which are generally relatively narrow and which are often swept by breezes, winds, and blowing curtains, drapes and the like and may not be entirely horizontal.

An important object of the invention is to provide a holder or anchoring means for a flower-pot or the like which holder is particularly adapted to be secured to a wooden support, such as a windowsill, by a pair of arms, the free end portions of which extend to the support and are secured thereto in spaced-apart relationship.

Since it is often desired to place a plurality of flowerpots upon a support, as a windowsill, an important object of the invention is to provide an assembly of two or more holders, with but one arm of each outermost holder secured to the support and the other arms, or some of them, providing connectors between adjacent flower-pots.

Another important object is to provide a holder as described which is inconspicuous but pleasing in appearance and which may be constructed of a single length of wire. 40

Additionally, an abject of the invention is to provide a holder as described which will enable the user to use it to disposed flower-pots vertically upon a slightly sloping support, as a windowsill.

A further important object is to provide a holder for ⁴⁵the purpose detailed which is easy and inexpensive to manufacture and free of coil springs, latches, turnbuckles and the like.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent during the course of the following detailed de- ^o0scription of the invention taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this disclosure and in which drawings:

Fig. 1 is a top plan view of one of the holders, detached from a flower-pot or the like. ⁵⁵

Fig. 2 is an elevation of the holder of Fig. 1 securing a flower-pot to a support.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged side elevation of a hook portion of the holder.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged elevation of the hook portion of ⁶⁰Fig. 3, as viewed toward its beak portion.

Fig. 5 is an elevation of three flower-pots and three holders secured together as a unit and the outermost holders secured to a support.

Fig. 6 is a connector element for the modified holder of Fig. 7.

Fig. 7 is an elevation of a modified holder securing a flower-pot to a support.

In the drawings, wherein for the purpose of illustra- 70 tion are shown two embodiments of the invention and wherein similar reference characters designate corre2 spending parts throughout the several views, the letter A designates one form of the holder; B, a second form thereof; C, D, E and F, examples of receptacles to be supported by the new holders; and G, H and K. sup5 ports to which the holders may be secured and upon which the receptacles are disposed.

The holder A of Figs. 1 to 5, inclusive, comprises a single length of suitable wire. The characteristics of the wire are that it may be bent to shape by the use of ¹⁰ tools and/or the hands but, when so bent, will maintain its shape and rigidity until again manipulated by tools and/or the hands.

This length of wire is suitably fashioned to include a _r receptacle-encircling portion 10 in the nature of a hoop, ⁰ a plurality of spaced-apart hooks 11 extending upwardly from the portion 10 and a pair of arms 12 and 13 extending downward and outwardly from the portion 10.

The ends of the receptacle encircling portion or hoop 10 provide, when the holder is not in use, as in Fig. 1, a ²⁰ gap 15 which is closed when the holder A is in use.

Referring mainly to Figs. 3 and 4, each of the hooks 11 comprises two upwardly-extending portions 20 and 21 which are joined to the hoop 10 by outwardly-extending substantially-horizontal shoulder portions 22 and 23, con⁵ structed and arranged to engage under the shoulder, as the shoulders generally found on flower-pots. So that the hoop 10 may be stretched to a fairly taut position about a flower-pot, the wire is looped so that one portion extends over the other portion of the shoulder portions 22 and 23 and the portions 20 and 21 cross each other. This forms a very desirable springy arrangement to effect such taut position of the hoop. At the upper ends of the portions 20 and 21 the wire is bent inwardly to form bight portions 24 and 25 and then the wire is extending downwardly to provide portions 26 and 27, with a final bight portion 28 joining the portions 26 and 27, thus forming the hooks 11. The number of hooks 11 may vary but three have been found as a desirable number for a hoop of substantially six inches in diameter, and two for a smaller hoop.

The arms 12 and 13 are best shown in Figs. 1 and 2 and are joined to the hoop 10 by curved or bight portions 30 and 31 so that the arms diverge from the hoop. The free end portion of each arm ends in an eyed portion 32 constructed and arranged to receive the shank of a suitable fastener, as a screw 35. It will be noted, as in Fig. 1, that the eyed portions 32 are formed by not wholly closing the loop of wire, whereby a gap 33 is left in the edge of the eyed portion.

In use, the filled or empty flower-pot C may be secured or anchored by grasping the arms 12 and 13 by the hands of the operator and springing the hoop 10 to permit it to be brought downwardly along the upper portion of the outer periphery 40 of the flower-pot until the hooks 11 hook over the upper edge 41 of the flower-pot and the shoulder portions 22 and 23 engage the downwardly facing annular shoulder 42 of the flower-pot. The hoop is then drawn taut, and the curved portions 30 and 31 are crossed so that the wire may be twisted into substantially the twist 43 of Fig. 2, whereupon the arms may be secured, as by screws 35, with their shanks extending through the eyes 32 and into a suitable support G, as a windowsill. Since such a sill sometimes is not substantially horizontal and may incline slightly, the flowerpot may be tipped slightly to compensate for this and secured in such slightly tipped position by the arms. The shoulder portions 22 and 23 prevent slipping of the flower-pot from this adjusted position and, of course, it is now obvious that the flower-pot is anchored against accidental tipping.

Two or more receptacles may be mutually anchored

2,803,418 against accidental tipping, as is illustrated, in the case of three flower-pots in Fig. 5, by employing three holders A consisting of one larger-sized holder for the centrally disposed flower-pot D and two smaller-sized holders A for the smaller flower-pots E. In this arrangement, one of each of the arms of the smaller holders A is cut off short by the operator as, for example, at the point 34 in Fig. 2, after the holders are affixed to the flower-pots and the twists made as heretofore described, and the arms of the larger holder become guys attached, by means of the eyes 32 thereof, to convenient portions of the hoops or arms of the smaller holders A (the gaps 33 permitting this). Of course, the remaining arm of each outermost holder A may be fixed to a support H as by suitable screws. Thus, all of the flower-pots D and E are secured against accidental tipping or displacement.

Referring now to the holder B of Figs. 6 and 7, this holder B is preferably like the holder A except that it does not require twisting of the wire to form the twist 43 and is composed of two lengths of wire, since there is employed a second length of wire formed, as by bending into substantially an S, as in Fig. 6. This length, forming an S-hook 50, is preferably of quite stout wire, and is employed, as is now obvious, as in Fig. 7 where it is hooked into the curved portions 31^b. Otherwise, portions of the holder B, corresponding to like portions of the holder A, are designated by similar reference characters in combination with a symbol, b. The free ends of the arms 12^b and 13^b are secured to a suitable support as the support K, as by screws 51. It is also now apparent that several receptacles may be associated with the receptacle F of Fig. 7, in a manner akin to that shown in Fig. 5, by employing a suitable number of holders B, and removing as at substantially the point 52 in Fig. 7, the unnecessary arm portion.

Because the only attachment of the holder A or B to a support may be made by means of small screws, or the like, the support is but little marred and the manipulations to secure the holders A and B to these supports require no rotations of the holders themselves.

It is clear that the flower-pots may be rotated with the holders in place, so as to turn different portions of a plant therein toward the light, as from a window.

Not only for economy of manufacture but also to eliminate such parts as would be apt to break or lose their effectiveness over periods of time and are not attractive additions to devices for this purpose, I employ no springs, latches, turnbuckles and the like.

Various changes may be made in the forms of the invention herein shown and described, without departing from the spirit of the invention or scope of the claims.