Abstract:
A joist mounted storage system having a pair of saddles, each of which rest upon and about adjacent joists. Extending upwardly from the saddles are arms between which pulleys are suspended and supported for the purpose of raising and lowering objects for storage.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
       [0001]    This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/260,096, filed Nov. 11, 2009, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference. 
     
    
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    This invention relates to a joist hanger. 
         [0003]    Garage space is at a premium and maximizing garage space is important to homeowners especially as they accumulate more things to put into the garage. Since floor space is limited, there is an abundance of storage devices used to store objects on garage walls. Thus, wall space is limited. Shelves may be used, however, these consume valuable floor space. 
         [0004]    Homeowners limited by available options within arm&#39;s reach of the floor sometimes resort to storing objects in the joists at the bottom, of their roof trusses. Boards may be placed across multiple joists on which to store objects. This can be an unsafe endeavor as a homeowner must climb a ladder or climb within the joists. The risk of falling on a concrete floor may not be justifiable. 
         [0005]    Ideally, one would be able to store items above the joists without having to climb to the joists. Retrieving the objects should be easily accomplished as well without leaving the ground. The ability to store items above the joists without leaving the ground would maximize the use of space that often would be wasted. 
         [0006]    This invention will be installed upon adjacent exposed joists, typically found in a garage or similar structure. Saddles are provided which extend about the joist and from which arms extend upwardly to support between them pulleys by which articles can be raised and lowered between the joists. 
         [0007]    Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide a joist supported system for storing items in a elevated position. 
         [0008]    Another object, of this invention is to provide a storage system which is mounted to adjacent joists in a building structure and between which items may be raised and suspended. 
         [0009]    And still another object of this invention is to provide a joist storage system which provides an accommodating space saver for storing items. 
         [0010]    Other objects of this invention will become apparent upon the reading of the following description. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0011]      FIG. 1  is a perspective of the joist hanger system; 
           [0012]      FIG. 1A  is a top view of the hinge where opposing arms meet; 
           [0013]      FIG. 2  is side view of the joist hanger system show in  FIG. 1 ; 
           [0014]      FIG. 3  is sectional view taken about the line  3 - 3  in  FIG. 2 ; 
           [0015]      FIG. 3A  is a sectional view of the safety catch; 
           [0016]      FIG. 4  is a perspective view of the joist hanger system with the boat holding loop accessory; 
           [0017]      FIG. 5  is a perspective of the collapsible tree accessory for holding elongate objects; 
           [0018]      FIG. 6  is a perspective of the collapsible basket accessory in its descended position; and 
           [0019]      FIG. 7  is a side view of the collapsible basket accessory shown in  FIG. 7  in its descended position, with broken lines to show how the basket collapses in the unfurled position. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
       [0020]    The present invention is a joist hanging system  10  typically used in garages, but could be used elsewhere where space is at a premium. The joist hanging system includes a pair of elongate saddles  12  that are parallel to each other. Each saddle has an upper portion  14  and a pair of legs  16  that extend downwardly from the upper portion. The legs  16  have a lower edge  20  at their lowermost portion that is opposite where the legs  16  attach to the upper portion  14 . The legs  16  are resilient and integrally molded with the upper portion  14 . The saddle  12  may be molded plastic that is lightweight and durable. The legs  16  are spaced opposite and parallel to each other to form a U-shaped channel between them for receiving a joist  22 . When the legs  16  are pushed apart, they will tend to spring back to the width shown in  FIG. 3 . 
         [0021]    Each leg  16  includes safety catches  25  that extend inwardly from inner surfaces  24  of the legs  16 .  FIGS. 3 and 3A  show the safety catches  25 . The catches  25  have a ramp surface  26  sloped upwardly and inwardly. A land surface  28  is located above the ramp surface  26  and meets the ramp surface to form a biting edge  30 . The land surface forms a corner  32  where it meets the inner surface  24  of the leg  16  from which it extends. The biting edge  30  is at or above the height of the corner  32 . The length of the safety catches  25  can be continuous along the length of the saddles  12 , or can be periodic for shorter lengths at various positions along the lower edges of the legs  16   
         [0022]    The upper portion  14  of the saddles  12  each hold a retaining pin  38  that is press fitted, or integrally molded into the saddles  12  within notches  39 . The pins  38  fit into arms  40 . The arms  40  extend upwardly from the saddles  12 . Each arm  40  has an upper end  42  and a lower end  44 . The pin  38  in the lower end  44  of each arm pivotally connects each arm  40  to its respective saddle. The lower end  44  of each arm  40  is convexly rounded and mates with the bottom of its corresponding notch  39  which is concavely rounded. Each arm  40  is opposite another arm, and opposing arms  40  are hingeadly joined at their upper ends  42 , pivoting around a round elongate member or rod  46 . FIG. IA shows the hinged connection at the upper ends  42  of opposing arms. 
         [0023]    The rod  46  supports a pair of upper pulleys  50  that receive a rope  52 . A pair of lower pulleys  54  are suspended on the rope  52 . Each of the lower pulleys  54  has a set of hooks  56  and the hooks  56  have a retention member  57  across their open end to prevent objects on them from being accidentally released. The hooks  56  may be used to hang and hoist objects directly, but are also specifically designed to lift accessories. Each accessory has a dog bone  60  structural member having holes  62  for receiving the hooks  56 . An accessory  70  that may be used with the joist hanger system  10  includes loops  66  of strap material that may be used to lift kayaks and canoes. This is shown in  FIG. 4 . Another accessory  72  is a collapsible tree for holding elongate objects  74  such as rakes, shovels, and the like as shown in  FIG. 5 . This accessory  72  has a dog bone  60  supporting two vertical members  78 . The vertical members  78  have support arms  80  that extend laterally and may be folded upward when not in use. When the arms  80  are in their lowered position as shown in  FIG. 5 , they are supported on stop blocks  81  that hold them in a substantially horizontal position. Another accessory  84  that may be used has a folding basket  86  that has pivotal lower supports  88  that fold down from vertical members  90 . This is shown in  FIG. 6 . The basket  86  is held up by cables  92  attached at one end to the vertical members  90 , and at their other end to a pivotable upper bail  96  that holds the netting  98 . The aforementioned accessories are merely exemplary and do not constitute the entire universe of possible accessories that may be developed for the joist hanger system  10 . All of the accessories  70 ,  72 ,  84  are collapsible and therefore may be packaged in a substantially smaller volume than would be taken if they were not collapsible. 
         [0024]    Preventing the objects and accessories from falling once they are lifted is accomplished with the use of a safety locking mechanism. This is located on the upper pulley  50 ′ nearest the free end of the rope. When the rope is pulled upward no resistance is encountered in lifting objects. Additionally, when objects are lowered no resistance will be encountered. However, when objects are lowered faster than a predetermined rate, the locking mechanism will seize and prevent the rope from moving in a downward direction. The predetermined rate of descent will be slower than that of free fall. Thus, when the rope is released and objects suspended by the rope allowed to fall freely, the locking mechanism will prevent the objects from falling. 
         [0025]    When a user wants to use the joist hanger system  10 , typically he will install it into a garage having exposed joists. When the joist hanger is shipped, it will be in a collapsed position with the saddles in contact next to each other and the arms  40  collapsed. The user will then take the joist hanger  10  and move the saddles  12  to the appropriate distance to accommodate the joists  22 , which are typically  16  or  24  inches on center. The joist hanger  10  will then be pulled downward onto the joists  22  into the position shown in  FIG. 3 . The safety catches  25  will have their biting edges  30  below the joists and the resilient legs  16  will maintain the position shown in  FIG. 3 . As such, the joist hanger system  10  will not be able to move upward accidentally. When a user wishes to remove the joist hanger system  10  from the joists, he will have to spread the legs  16  apart enough so that the biting edges  30  clear the joists  22 . In the installed position, the joist hanger system  10  will hold objects above the joists  22  as shown in  FIG. 1 . Installation and removal are both accomplished without the use of any tools. 
         [0026]    After installation, a user will select the accessory  70 ,  72 ,  84  for the object he wishes to lift. He will then attach the hooks  56  to the holes in the dog bone  60  of the accessory  70 ,  72 ,  84 . The user will then pull the rope until the objects he wishes to store are lifted to the desired height. Once the objects are at the desired height, the rope will be tied to an accessible location removed from the joist hanger system  10 . 
         [0027]    This invention is not limited to the details above, but may be modified within the scope of the following claims.