Abstract:
A self-leveling sign hanging device having a housing hung from the structural support members of suspended ceilings. A cable is stored in the housing on a wind up reel. A spring applies a force to the reel to wind the cable on the reel. The cable exits and returns to the housing forming a loop. At the bottom of the loop is a tubular bracket from which the sign is hung. The cable freely passes through the tubular bracket which allows the tubular bracket to remain horizontally level. Stops are mounted on the cable to restrict the length of cable wound onto the reel thus defining the height that the sign hangs above the floor.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates to signs, posters or banners that are hung from ceilings. In particular this invention relates to retractable hanging mechanisms that are self-leveling. 
     There have been invented many hangers for hanging signs, advertising materials, or other materials from suspended ceilings. This is usually done by attaching a string or wire to a metal hanger that is attached to the cross bracing that supports the suspended ceiling. The sign is then attached to the other end of the string. This process requires the person hanging the sign to place a ladder under the area where the sign is to be hung, climb the ladder, to reach the suspended ceiling, and attach one end of the string to the ceiling brace. If a second string or wire is used, the process must be repeated. The appropriate length of string is let out and the other or loose end is attached to the sign. This process is repeated for the second string. Each time a new sign is hung, the strings may or may not be replaced, but the sign must be removed and a new sign attached to the loose ends of the string at the proper height. This presents a problem in that the exact amount of string must be measured from the ceiling for each string, or the sign will not be level. 
     There is also a safety issue when repeatedly moving a ladder into aisles where people may be present. Tools used to hang the sign may fall off the ladder injuring shoppers or employees. The installer may fall off the ladder when attaching the sign. The more times the installer has to climb the ladder, the greater the risk of injury. Thus it would be a great improvement over the prior art if the ceiling hung signs could be changed by a person while standing on the floor. 
     Various clips have been designed in the past that attach to ceiling members. One example is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 5,082,227 to Insko. This illustrates a hanger and tool that attaches to a suspended ceiling. The tool allows the hanger to be attached to the ceiling support members while the installer remains on the floor. However this device does not illustrate a self-leveling mechanism, nor does it provide a string or cable with which to attach the sign in a self-leveling arrangement. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     In the preferred embodiment applicant&#39;s ceiling hanger has a hanger housing that attaches to an inverted T-shaped ceiling support beam by means of metal spring-loaded clips. Inside of the housing is a spring-loaded reel. One long cable of approximately twenty-four feet has one of its ends attached to the reel. The cable exits the housing and a spring-loaded stopper is threaded onto the cable. The cable passes through a hollow sign tube and a second spring loaded stopper is threaded onto the cable. The opposite end of the cable is attached to the reel. Both ends of the cable are wound on the reel so that when the cable is drawn off the reel, the spring applies a force to wind the cable back onto the reel. The sign is hung from the hollow tube. Each end of the cable is marked with different colored marks every foot, so that the spring-loaded stoppers can be placed to a colored mark on each end of the cable to set the sign hanging height. When the cable is wound back onto the reel, the spring-loaded stoppers engage the hanger housing, keeping the cables from further being wound upon the reel. The cable passes freely through the tube so that when the sign is hung from the tube, the weight of the tube and sign cause the sign and tube to self-level. A user extends a pole that has a molded pole head that engages the tube with either a pushing or grabbing side of the head depending on whether the user want to raise or lower the sign. To change the sign, the tube is pulled towards the ground and the cable unwinds from the reel. The user grasps the tube, changes the sign and/or the stoppers, and pushes the sign lightly with the pole. The weight of the sign and tube is released from the cable, and the cable retracts until the stoppers hit the hanger housing. In this manner the sign can be changed without the installer having to go up on a ladder. 
     OBJECT AND ADVANTAGES 
     An object of the self-leveling ceiling hanger is to provide a hanger to hang signs from a ceiling with a self-leveling mechanism so that the sign automatically levels itself with respect to the ground. Another object is to provide a ceiling hanger that easily attaches to suspended ceiling support members. 
     Another object is to provide a ceiling hanger that allows the installer to change the sign while standing on the ground once the hanger housing is attached to the ceiling supports. Related to this object is the object of providing a ceiling hanger that has a cable that extends from and retracts into the ceiling hanger housing by means of a spring-loaded reel. An advantage of this is that it allows the sign to be lowered to the ground by pulling on the sign to change the sign. 
     Another object is to provide a ceiling hanger that has stopping means on the cable to accurately measure the length of cable removed from the reel so that the sign is mounted the selected height above the floor. 
     Another object is to provide a ceiling hanger that is economical to manufacture and easy to operate. 
    
    
     These and other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art when the following description of the drawings and detailed description of the preferred embodiment are studied. 
     DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is front view of ceiling hanger of the present invention in two positions, one in which the user is standing on the floor and attaching the sign; the other in which the user is pulling the sign down to be changed. 
     FIG. 2 is a front elevation view of the ceiling hanger housing. 
     FIG. 3 is a front elevation view of the ceiling hanger housing with the cover removed exposing the internal components. 
     FIG. 3A is a front elevation view of an alternate embodiment of the ceiling hanger housing with the cover removed exposing the internal components. 
     FIG. 4 is a front view with portions removed showing the internal construction of the spring-loaded take up reel. 
     FIG. 5 is a bottom view of the ceiling hanger housing. 
     FIG. 6 is a top plan view of the ceiling hanger housing. 
     FIG. 7 is an end view of the ceiling hanger housing. 
     FIG. 8 is an end view of the ceiling hanger housing with portions removed illustrating the housing mounting clips in their open position. 
     FIG. 9 is an end view of the ceiling hanger housing with portions illustrating the housing mounting clips in their closed position. 
     FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the sign hanging tube and sign hanging cable, with portions of the cable removed. 
     FIG. 11 is a front view with portions removed of the pole with molded head used to raise and lower the sign hanging tube. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Turning to FIG. 1 there is illustrated a ceiling sign hanger  10  of the present invention. The ceiling sign hanger  10  has a housing  12  designed to be attached to a suspended ceiling. A cable  14  having left and right ends  15  and  16  respectively extends from the housing  12  to a sign hanging tube  18 . Ideally the tube  18  is hollow and the cable  14  has its left end  15  threaded through the tube  18  and returns to the housing  12  by right end  16 . The tube  18  is thus free to slide on the cable  14 . A sign or banner  20  is hung from the tube  18 . The cable  14  and left and right ends  15  and  16  form a loop extending from the housing  12 . By varying the size of this loop, the distance that the sign  20  hangs above the floor can be adjusted. In one position a sign installer  22  is standing on the ground and holding the tube  18  and attaching the sign  20 . In the other position the sign installer  24  is using a telescoping pole  26  to pull the tube  18  and the sign  20  hung from it toward the ground. Preferably the cable  14  is a single cable, but it may be made of two individual cables that are fastened together. The disadvantage is that in this embodiment, the cables may become undone. 
     As seen in FIG. 2 there are metal grommets  28  and  29  mounted on either side of the housing  12  where the cable end  15  and  16  pass through the housing  12 . This minimizes the wear and tear on the cable ends  15  and  16  as they are pulled into and out from the housing  12 . FIGS. 3 and 4 illustrate the internal operating components within the housing  12 . There is a reel  30  mounted for rotation on a shaft  32 . As seen in FIG. 4, the left and right ends  15  and  16  are attached to the reel  30 . As the reel turns in the direction of arrow “A” the cable ends  15  and  16  simultaneously wind on the reel  30 . A spring assembly  34  has one end connected to and is wrapped around the shaft  32 . The other end of the spring assembly  34  is connected to the reel  30 . The spring  34  applies a force to the reel  30  in the direction of arrow “A”. Other types of spring assemblies can be used as long as a relatively constant force is applied to the reel  30  in one direction. The spring assembly  34  should apply a force to slowly raise a weight of about two pounds hanging from the cable  14 . If greater sign weights are going to be hung, a stronger spring is required. The spring assembly  34  and reel  30  operate similar to a spring loaded tape measure that pulls the extended tape back into the housing after being pulled out to measure a distance. 
     From the reel  30 , the left end  15  passes over a metal sleeve  36  on an idler roller  38 . (See FIG.  3 ). The sleeve  36  rotates on the roller  38  to minimize cable wear. The left end  15  then passes over another idler roller  40 , similar to the sleeve  36  and idler roller  38 , before exiting through the metal grommet  28 . From the reel  30 , the right end  16  passes over a metal sleeve  42  on an idler roller  44 . The right end  16  then passes over another idler roller  46 , similar to the sleeve  42  and idler roller  44 , before exiting the housing  12  through the grommet  29 . 
     FIG. 5 is a bottom view of the housing  12 . There is a pair of attachment clips  46  and  48 , which are more clearly illustrated in FIGS. 8 and 9. The design of the clips  46  and  48  is similar to a clothespin. Each of the attachment clips is made from links  50 ,  52 . Each link has an arm portion  54 ,  56  that is pivotally mounted on a common shaft  58 . The links terminate at legs  60  and  62  which are adapted to be grasped by the thumb and index finger of the user. A spring  64  is wrapped around the shaft  58  and has its ends placed against the legs  60  and  62 . The spring  64  applies a force against the legs  60  and  62  to force them apart. This causes head portions  66  and  68 , which are opposite the legs  60 ,  62  to be forced toward each other with a force proportional to the spring force applied by the spring  64 . When the user applies a compressive force to the legs  60 ,  62  to overcome the spring force applied by the spring  64 , the head portions  66 ,  68  spread apart as seen in FIG.  8 . 
     The head portions  66 ,  68  are c-shaped in cross section. They are designed to receive and lock onto a metal structural support  69  such as commonly used in suspended ceilings. When the metal support is positioned between the spread apart head portions  66 ,  68 , the user releases pressure on the legs  60 ,  62  allowing the spring  62  to force the head portions  66 ,  68  back to their normally closed position with the metal support locked between the c-shaped portion of the heads  66 ,  68 . The clips  46 ,  48  can be removed and repositioned by reversing the process and spreading the head portions  66 ,  68  away from each other to release the clips from the support. 
     The left and right cable ends  15  and  16  are marked with printed or painted bands or color coding  70 ,  72  at predetermined increments. These are most conveniently placed at one-foot increments as measured from either the housing  12  or from the ends of the cables  15  and  16 . The pairs of markings  70 ,  72  should be approximately equal in distance from the ends of the cable  15  and  16 . There is a spring loaded stopper  74  on both ends  15  and  16 . The stopper  74  receives the cables  15  and  16  in a slidable relationship. There is a spring loaded stopper button  76  that passes through the stopper  74 . When the stopper button  76  is pressed in, the stopper  74  is released from engaging the cable end  15  or  16  sot that it can be slid along and repositioned on the cable ends  15  or  16 . When the stopper button  76  is released, the stopper  74  engages and locks onto the cable  15  or  16 . The stoppers  74  are placed on the cable ends  15  and  16  with both stoppers  74  placed on a matching distance band  70 ,  72 . When the cable ends  15  and  16  are pulled back into the housing  12 , the stoppers  74  strike the housing  12  or depending on how far they extend from the housing, the metal grommets  28  and  29 , which stops the further retraction of the cable ends  15  and  16  into the housing  12  and onto the reel  30 . This controls the amount of cable that is wound onto the reel  30  and the amount of cable extending out from the reel  30 . Although a spring loaded stopper  74  is disclosed, other stopper means can be employed such as a collar with a set screw or other similar device which operate in a similar manner. The advantage of a spring loaded stopper is that it can be released and positioned along the cable  14  without requiring additional tools. 
     As seen in FIG. 10, as the left cable end  15  is threaded through the sign hanging tube  18  and exists the opposite end of the tube  18  as right cable end  16 . As the tube  18  is hollow, the left and right cable ends  15  and  16  are free to slip through the tube  18 . The tube  18  has an upside down T-bar  78  molded in one piece with the tube  18 . Two “s” hooks  80  can be hung from holes  81  to which the sign  20  can be attached. Alternatively the T-bar  78  can be used with an open market banner hanging system. Other attachment means can be utilized that would be readily apparent to those skilled in the art. 
     To use the ceiling sign hanger  10 , a tool  82  such as illustrated in FIG. 11 must be employed. The initial installation of the sign hanger  10  requires a ladder or other elevated support so that the housing  12  is mounted to the suspended ceiling metal support  69 . The attachment clips  46  and  48  are clipped onto the support  69  at the location where the sign  20  is to hang. Once the housing is attached to the ceiling metal support  69 , a ladder is no longer required to change the sign  20 . The only reason a ladder is needed again is if the location of the sign is changed. The tool  82  is used to lower the tube  18  to attach or change a sign  20 . The tool  82  has a head  84  at the end of the telescoping pole  26 . The pole  26  is extended until the head  84  grasps the tube  18 . The user pulls the tube down as seen in FIG.  1 . The sign  20  is attached to the “s” clips  80 . Other clips or mounting means can also be used to attach the sign  20  as will be apparent to those skilled in the art. The proper height that the sign is to hang from the ceiling is determined. The stoppers  74  are fastened to the left and right ends  15  and  16  at the place that allows the cable ends  15  and  16  to be withdrawn into the housing  12  so that the sign  20  hangs the proper height above the floor. The bands or marking  70 ,  72  along the left and right cable ends  15  and  16  make it easy to place the stoppers  74  at approximately the same distance from the ends  15  and  16 . This also gives the installer an approximate location to place the stoppers  74  to hang the sign  20  at the desired height. 
     The installer  22  raises the sign  20  by using the tool  82  until the stoppers  74  engage the housing  12 . The tool  82  is removed from engaging the tube  18  and the height of the sign is checked to verify that it is at the proper height. If it needs adjustment, the process is repeated and the stoppers  74  are moved along the left and right ends  15  and  16 . As the ends  15  and  16  freely pass through the sign hanging tube  18 , the weight of the sign and tube serve to self level the sign  20 . This is the reason that the location of the stoppers  74  on the left and right ends  15  and  16  do not have to be exactly the same distance from the ends of the cable ends  15  and  16 . The installer  22  merely slides the tube  18  along the cable  14  to assist in leveling the sign  20 . No tools or further adjustments are necessary. 
     FIG. 3A illustrates an alternate embodiment of the housing assembly with a different operating mechanism. The retracting mechanism is substantially similar to the previous embodiment except that only the left end  15  of the cable  14  is attached to the reel  30 . The right end  16  of the cable  14  is attached to a screw  84  in the housing  12 . The left end  15  passes over several idler rollers  86  as are necessary to supply adequate braking to the cable  15  as it is withdrawn onto the reel  30 . Only a single stopper  74  is mounted on the left cable end  15  to control the amount of cable  14  that will wind on the reel  30 . In operation, the stopper  74  is set at the desired height, the left cable end  15  withdraws into the housing  12  and the tube  18  slides along the cable  14  and levels itself along the bottom of the cable  14 . 
     Thus there has been provided a self-leveling ceiling sign hanger that fully satisfies the objects and advantages as set forth above. The invention has been described in conjunction with specific embodiments; however, it is evident that other alternatives, modifications and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art in light of the foregoing description. Accordingly it is intended to embrace all such alternatives, modifications and variations as fall within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.