Curtain rod bracket construction

A bracket construction for mounting curtain rods and the like to a conventional wooden molding which eliminates the conventional need for screws or nails. The bracket includes an essentially flat base plate from which a pair of opposed curtain rod receiving arms project forwardly and a top flange which projects rearwardly from the top edge of the base plate and is furthermore provided with downwardly projecting tangs. The flange is adapted to contact upper edge portions of the molding and the tang adapted to project thereinto so as to support the bracket in the desired position on the molding. In addition, a side tab rearwardly projects from the base plate and is adapted to contact the side edge or end wall of the molding so as to mount the bracket at the molding extremity. Normally a pair of such brackets are utilized in conjunction with each other, as for mounting at opposite ends of the molding and in one embodiment of the invention to a pair of such brackets are made joined to each other at their bottom edges along a weakened line so that they may be disconnected for use. In addition, the flange and tab of the brackets, whether the brackets are formed individually or in pairs as above-described, may be readily removed from the base plate so that the bracket may be conventionally attached to the molding by screws or the like, when desired.

BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
This invention relates to a bracket for attachment to wall moldings and the 
like such that rod-like elements, i.e. curtain rods, may be supported 
thereby. Brackets of this type are well-known and include an essentially 
flat base plate having a pair of spaced openings to receive nails, screws 
and the like such that the plate may be affixed to opposite ends of a 
window molding. Such brackets include a pair of forwardly projecting rod 
receiving arms on which curtain rods are supported. A problem in utilizing 
brackets of such known construction is that the nails or screws cause 
holes in the molding and after several repositionings as may be required 
over the years, the molding may become honeycombed or even split. This 
makes it increasingly difficult to mount new pairs of curtains, draperies, 
or the like on to the molding. 
It is accordingly an object of the present invention to provide a bracket 
which when used to support curtain rods and the like from wooden and other 
moldings does not require screws or nails for such attachment to the 
molding. 
In addition, since such brackets are normally used in pairs with one of 
each pair at opposite ends of a molding, it is also an object of the 
present invention to provide a construction wherein a pair of such 
brackets may be manufactured as a single unit with means permitted ready 
separation of the brackets for use. 
These and other objects of the present invention are accomplished by the 
provision of a bracket comprising an essentially flat base plate. The top 
edge of such plate includes a rearwardly extending flange adapted to 
contact upper edge portions of the molding while the rear surface of the 
plate is adapted to contact the front face thereof. In addition, the 
flange includes a downwardly extending tang which is adapted to dig or 
bite into the material from which the molding is formed so as to securely 
position the bracket thereon. In order to further properly position the 
bracket, the plate is additionally provided with a rearwardly extending 
tab adapted to contact side or end portions of the molding. Both the 
flange and the tab are attached to the plate by weakened lines wherein 
repeated bending of the tab or flange at said lines will permit removal of 
same from the plate so that the plate can be alternatively conventionally 
attached to the wall molding by screws or nails, if desired. In one form 
of the invention, a pair of brackets structured for use on opposite sides 
of a molding, i.e. a left and right side, are formed together by a 
temporary attachment along a weakened line connection at their bottom 
edges, whereby where separated, left end and right end brackets are 
automatically provided. 
Other objects, features and advantages of the invention shall become 
apparent as the description thereof proceeds when considered in connection 
with the accompanying illustrative drawing.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
Turning now to the drawing and particularly FIGS. 1 and 2 thereof, a 
particular embodiment of the present invention wherein a pair of brackets 
10 are disposed in end to end connected relationship with each other to 
form a bracket pair assembly 12 is depicted. Each bracket 10 includes an 
essentially flat base plate 14 having top and bottom edges 16 and 18 
respectively and opposed side edges 20. A pair of vertically spaced 
openings 22 are disposed through the plate and may be used in a manner as 
hereinafter will be more fully explained. The top edge 16 of the plate is 
provided with a rearwardly extending flange 24 which in turn terminates in 
a rear edge 26 from which a pair of downwardly extending tangs 28 extend. 
Such tangs 28 are generally triangularly shaped, i.e. they downwardly 
project and terminate in a point. In addition, one of the side edges 20 is 
provided with a rearwardly extending tab 30 which includes an opening 32 
therethrough. Generally, the angular attitude of the flange 24 and the tab 
30 with respect to the plate 14 is a right angle relationship, i.e. normal 
to the plane formed by the base plate 14. 
As illustrated, a pair of brackets 10 form a bracket assembly 12 through 
the connection of such brackets at their respective lower edges 18 along a 
weakened line 34. In this regard, it should be pointed out the individual 
brackets 10 when formed separately and the bracket assembly 12 are 
preferably formed from a single piece of metallic sheet stock, i.e. brass 
or other suitably formable material. Such sheet is then die cut to size 
and bent into the appropriate shape as above explained so as to form a 
bracket or brackets as the case may be. 
Each bracket is provided with a pair of laterally spaced rod supporting 
arms 36 which forwardly project from the front face of the plate 14 and 
upwardly terminate in narrowed finger portions 38. Such finger portions 38 
are adapted for receipt in a pair of spaced openings within curtain rods 
and the like (not shown) so as to support such at the opposite ends 
thereof, or in the alternative, said rods are supported on edges 39 in a 
conventional manner. Generally the weakened line 34 is formed by coining 
or scoring so as to present a reduced thickness line which when 
appropriately worked as by repeated or even a single bending of the 
bracket pair of the assembly 12 with respect to each other as shown in 
FIG. 6 will serve to break the weakened line and thus disconnect the 
brackets 10 from each other. Similarly, the flange 24 and the tab 30 of 
each bracket 10 are provided with weakened lines 40 and 42 respectively. 
The weakened lines 34, 40 and 42 are preferably provided in the rear face 
of the base plate 14, that is, that side of the bracket adapted for 
engagement with the front face 44 of a molding 46. The molding is also 
provided with generally planar top edge and side edge surfaces 48 and 50 
respectively. 
In order to mount one of the brackets 10 upon a molding 46, the appropriate 
bracket 10, i.e. left or right hand, for the particular molding edge to 
which it is to be attached, is placed against the front face 44 with the 
tab 30 thereof aligned with the side surface 50 of the molding 
(illustrated in FIG. 3). It should be understood that such tab 30 is 
positioned on the left hand side of a bracket 10 adapted for positioning 
on the left side of a molding and on the right hand side of a bracket 
adapted for mounting to the right hand side of the molding. Accordingly, 
the tabs 30 of respective brackets 10 when formed in the interconnected 
bracket pair assembly 12 shown, are disposed proximate such each other on 
opposite sides of the weakened line 34, so that when the brackets 10 are 
separated from each other, a left end and right end bracket are 
automatically provided. Also as shown in FIG. 3, the opening 32 in the tab 
may be utilized to receive the shaft portion of a thumb tack 52 which 
passes therethrough and into the side surface 50 of the molding 46 to 
assist in attaching the bracket 14 to the molding. 
The manner by which the bracket 10 is primarily supported from the molding 
is, however, through the rearwardly extending flange 24 which is adapted 
to contact and accordingly rest on the upper edge surface 48 of the 
molding 46. In this regard, the tangs 28 are additionally adapted to 
pierce or project into the molding through the surface 48 and thus 
properly fix the bracket to the molding in the desired position. Such 
position is of course assisted by the presence of the tab 30. 
In this manner, it may be seen that the brackets 10 may be mounted to the 
molding 46 in the desired manner without the use of any nails or screws 
passing into the front surface of the molding as in prior art 
constructions. However, the plate 14 is provided with a pair of spaced 
openings 22 as previously brought out such that the bracket construction 
of the present invention may be converted into a conventional structure as 
by the removal of the tab 30 and the flange 24. Such removal procedure is 
best shown in FIG. 7 wherein the flange is upwardly forwardly bent about 
the weakened line 40 while the tab 30 is similarly forwardly and laterally 
bent about its weakened line 42. Such removal of the flange 24 and tab 30 
enables the plate 14 to be disposed in face to face relationship to the 
front face 44 of the molding as shown in FIG. 8 and affixed thereto by 
nails or screws 54 passing through the openings 22 and projecting into the 
molding 46 in the conventional manner. 
While there is shown and described herein certain specific structure 
embodying the invention, it will be manifest to those skilled in the art 
that various modifications and rearrangements of the parts may be made 
without departing from the spirit and scope of the underlying inventive 
concept and that the same is not limited to the particular forms herein 
shown and described except insofar as indicated by the scope of the 
appended claims.