Hanger with child-proof size-indicator and tool for removing same

A combination garment hanger that is equipped for accommodating a child-proof size-indicating tab and a tool for removing said child-proof size-indicating tab from the said garment hanger is provided. The improved system enables an assembly-line worker to quickly and easily remove a child-proof tab from a garment hanger when a tab indicating the incorrect size is mistakenly applied to a garment hanger. The tool quickly and easily pries the tab off of the garment hanger so that a correct size-indicating tab may be applied to the hanger. The tab-holding section of the garment hanger is specially designed to accommodate the tool without compromising the child-proof qualities of the hanger and tab.

This invention relates generally to an improved system for indicating the 
size of a garment suspended from a garment hanger. More specifically, this 
invention relates to an improved size-indicating tab and garment hanger 
equipped to accommodate size-indicating tabs whereby the size-indicating 
tab may be removed with specially designed tools in the event an incorrect 
size-indicating tab is mounted onto the garment hanger. Further, the 
combination garment hanger and tab is childproof whereby the 
size-indicating tabs are not removable by hand but only with the use of a 
tool whose use is beyond the capabilities of small children. 
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
The concept of a garment hanger that includes a label or tab mounted on the 
hanger that indicates the size of the garment is well-known and is 
commonly provided in what is known as a size-indicating tab. Further, 
modern safety standards require such size-indicating tabs be "child-proof" 
or irremovable once installed on a hanger. Otherwise, a small tab removed 
from the hanger may become lodged in a child's throat causing suffocation 
or serious injury. However, the child-proof size-indicating tabs currently 
available suffer from one common drawback: the tabs are not easily removed 
in the factory in the event that the wrong size tabs are installed by 
mistake. 
Accordingly, there is a need for a system which includes a garment hanger 
and a size-indicating tab whereby the size-indicating tab may be removed 
without undue delay in the event the incorrect size-indicating tab is 
placed on the hanger. The manner in which the size-indicating tab can be 
removed must not be too easy; in other words, the size-indicating tab must 
still be "child-proof" or must be removable only with reasoning and finger 
dexterity available only to adolescents and adults. Otherwise, the tab 
would not satisfy the safety concerns of retailers and consumers. 
From a cost-of-production standpoint, garment manufacturers need a 
size-indicating tab that is removable in the event the factory worker 
applies tabs indicating an incorrect size to a group of garment hangers or 
to a group of garment hangers carrying garments. An easy-to-use tool would 
be highly desirable in removing the wrong size-indicating tabs from the 
hangers and quickly replacing the wrong size-indicating tabs with correct 
tabs. Otherwise, the garment hanger including the wrong tab may have to be 
discarded, set aside or rerouted to another section of the facility in 
order to be used. If a fast and efficient system is provided, the wrong 
tab may be quickly removed, discarded and the correct tab be placed on the 
hanger and the only wasted materials would be the very small tabs that are 
removed from the garment hangers. A more important commodity--time, would 
be conserved. 
Therefore, there is a need for an improved size-indicating tab in 
combination with a garment hanger whereby an incorrect tab may be quickly 
and easily removed by an assembly-line worker. The combination 
size-indicating tab and hanger must also retain the child-proof 
characteristics discussed above. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention makes a significant contribution to the garment 
hanger art by providing an improved size-indicating system that is 
correctable. The size-indicating tab provided by the present invention may 
be easily removed from the garment hanger provided by the present 
invention by a simple-to-use tool and therefore an incorrect tab may be 
quickly and easily removed from a garment hanger in the factory setting 
before a correct tab is attached to the hanger. Further, the hanger/tab 
system provided by the present invention is safe for use in homes with 
small children. 
The improved system provided by the present invention includes a garment 
hanger, a size-indicating tab and a means for removing the tab from the 
hanger. The garment hanger includes a garment support member connected to 
a hook or hang means. A tab-holding section is disposed at the connection 
between the garment support member and the hang means. The tab-holding 
section includes a wall which extends frontward along the shoulder of the 
garment support member towards the consumer. The wall terminates at a base 
portion of the tab-holding member. Each side of the wall includes a rib 
disposed between the base portion of the tab-holding member and the 
hanger. The space along each side of the wall between the rib and the base 
portion of the tab-holding member defines a receiving section for 
accommodating a curved end of a U-shaped tab. 
The tab includes two opposing side members with the front end disposed 
therebetween. The opposing side members extend rearward and terminate at 
the inwardly curved ends that are accommodated in the receiving section 
when the tab is inserted over the tab-holding member and onto the hanger. 
The tab engages the tab-holding member so that the curved ends are in 
abutting engagement with the receiving sections behind the base portion of 
the tab-holding member and in front of the ribs. The base portion of the 
tab-holding member prevents the tab from being pulled frontward and off of 
the hanger and the protective ribs prevent small fingers from obtaining a 
purchase on the inwardly curved ends of the tab. 
The means for removing the tab may be provided in a variety of forms, one 
of which is as follows. At least one channel disposed on the side of the 
wall extends through the rib, through the receiving section and through 
the base portion of the tab-holding member. A corresponding tab-removing 
tool includes one finger capable of extending through the channel and 
obtaining a purchase on one curved end of the size-indicating tab. The 
channel provides a ramp or passageway for the tool that leads to a curved 
end of the tab. The tab can be removed by pulling or pushing the 
tab-removing tool. The channel is sufficiently narrow so as to not enable 
the finger of a small child to obtain a purchase on the curved end of the 
tab. That is, the channel is not wide enough so as to interfere with the 
protective function provided by the rib. 
In one embodiment, each wall of the tab-holding section of the garment 
hanger includes three channels although a range of one to four channels 
can be used. One tab-removing tool includes two opposing side palms that 
are hingedly connected together. Each palm includes three curved fingers 
disposed at the distal end thereof. The palms are opened, the tool is 
pushed over the tab-holding section of the garment hanger and then the 
tool is closed or the palms are pushed toward one and other thereby 
causing each curved finger to be pushed forward through the channel to 
obtain a purchase on the curved distal end of the size-indicating tab. The 
fingers, in effect, pry the curved ends of the tab away from the receiving 
sections of the tab-holding section and then the user may then simply pull 
the tool forward which will cause the tab to pull off of the tab-holding 
member. 
As noted above, the configuration just-described may be substantially 
varied and still fall within the scope of the present invention. For 
example, only one channel is required in order to provide a passageway for 
a distal end of a tab-removing tool that will engage a curved end of the 
tab. Providing channels on both sides of the tab-holding section makes it 
easier to remove the tab and further providing a plurality of channels on 
each side of the tab-holding section makes it still easier to remove an 
incorrect size-indicating tab. In short, anywhere from one channel may be 
provided or one channel on each side or up to three or more channels on 
each side may be provided. Accordingly, the tab-removing tool should 
preferably include one finger or tab-engaging element per channel. The 
specific designs of the tab-removing tool disclosed in the drawings are 
convenient to use because as the two palms or two legs are pushed inwardly 
or toward one and other, the curved fingers which curve in a forward 
direction engage the channel and extend forward to the channel toward the 
curved ends of the tab. When sufficient inward pressure is applied to the 
tool by the user, the fingers will have extended forward through the 
portion of the channels that extend through the base portion of the 
tab-holding member and will have engaged the curved ends of the tab and 
have pried the curved ends of the tab away from the receiving sections and 
up and over the base portion of the flared tab-holding member. 
The present invention also lends itself to an improved method of removing 
child-proof size-indicating tabs from specially equipped garment hangers. 
Once the assembly-line worker discovers that he or she has placed an 
incorrect size-indicating tab on a garment hanger, the worker then opens 
the tab-removing tool and places it over the tab and aligns the curved 
fingers disposed at the distal ends of the tab-removing tool with the 
channels provided in the garment hanger. The tool is then closed or 
pressed inward so that the curved fingers extend forward through the 
channels and into the portion of the channels disposed in the base portion 
of the tab-holding member. The engagement of the curved fingers with the 
curved ends of the tab cause the tab to be pried away from the receiving 
sections of the tab-holding section and forward over the base portion of 
the tab-holding member. The tool is then pulled forward. The forward 
movement of the tool causes the fingers to slide forward through the 
portions of the channels disposed in the base portion of the tab-holding 
member and this action also causes the fingers to pull the tab completely 
off of the tab-holding member. 
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an improved 
garment hanger that provides a means for removing child-proof 
size-indicating tabs therefrom. 
Another object of the present invention is to provide a tool for removing 
child-proof size-indicating tabs from garment hangers. 
Yet another object of the present invention to provide an improved method 
for removing an incorrect size-indicating tab from a garment hanger.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
Like reference numerals will be used to refer to like or similar parts from 
Figure to Figure in the following description of the drawings. 
As seen in FIG. 1, the garment hanger 10 includes a hook or hang means 12 
which is mounted to a garment support member 14. The hook 12 as shown in 
FIG. 1 is intended to engage a rod-type clothes rack as found in most 
homes. However, the hang means 12 may be reconfigured to accommodate the 
different types of clothes racks found in hotels which are designed to 
deter theft of the garment hangers or other, more modern clothes racks. 
The tab-holding section, indicated generally at 16 is disposed between the 
hook 12 and the shoulder 18. A wall 20 extends frontward from the hook 
12/shoulder 18 junction. As best seen in FIG. 1, the embodiment 
illustrated in the figures includes three channels 22, 24, 26 which 
provide access passageways for the fingers of the tab-removing tools which 
will be discussed in detail later. The channels 22, 24, 26 are considered 
to be interruptions or slots in the rib indicated generally at 28 and the 
tab-holding member indicated at 34. The rib 28 could also be considered to 
be a series of protrusions with the wall 20 or flattened areas 22, 24, 26 
disposed therebetween. The remaining elements of the tab-holding section 
16 are more easily described in FIGS. 2 and 3. 
Turning to FIG. 2, the wall 20 extends frontward and terminates at the 
flared edges 30, 32 of the base portion of the tab-holding member 34. In 
the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the tab-holding member 34 is 
bullet-shaped; however, other configurations will be readily ascertainable 
by those skilled in the art. For example, the primary requirements of the 
tab-holding member 34 are the narrow or tapered front end 36 and the 
flared base portion 38 which provides the edges 30, 32 which act to hold 
the tab 40 (see FIG. 8) in place. An alternative configuration could be an 
arrow-shaped tab-holding member 34 with a narrow front end and flared base 
portion or a more triangular-shaped tab-holding member 34. Further, a 
triangular-shaped base portion would also work because it would have a 
narrow front end for sliding the tab onto the tab-holding member and a 
flared base portion for retaining the curved ends 42, 44 (see FIG. 8) in 
place. 
Returning to FIG. 2, the wall 20 carries two outwardly protruding ribs 28, 
48. As seen in FIGS. 8 and 16, the ribs 28, 48 provide a guard for the 
curved ends 42, 44 of the tab 40 thereby precluding the small fingers of a 
child from obtaining a purchase on the curved ends 42, 44 of the tab 40 
and thereby ensuring that the tab 40 is "child proof". Returning to FIG. 
2, the wall 20 defines two receiving sections 50, 52. Receiving section 50 
is disposed between the rib 28 and the edge 30 of the flared base portion 
38. The receiving section 52 is disposed between the rib 48 and the edge 
32 of the flared base portion 38. The receiving sections 50, 52 
accommodate the curved ends 42, 44 as illustrated in FIG. 8. 
Turning to FIGS. 2 and 3 with further reference back to FIG. 1, a channel 
54 corresponding to the channel 26 is also included on the opposing side 
of the wall 20. The channel 26 begins rearward of the rib 28 and extends 
through the rib 28 past the edge 30 of the base portion 38. The channel 26 
provides an effective passageway for a tab-removing tool 80 (see FIGS. 
9-19) the extend past the protective rib 28 forward to engage to curved 
end 42 of the tab 40 as seen in FIG. 8. Similarly, the channel 54 provides 
a passageway for a tab-removing tool 80 to extend past the protective rib 
48 forward to engage the curved end 44 of the tab 40. A variety of 
tab-removing tools will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art 
with two of the possible embodiments illustrated below. 
Turning to FIGS. 4 and 8, the tab 40 includes a front end 46 disposed 
between the opposing side members 56, 58. The opposing side members 56, 58 
terminate in the inwardly curved ends 42, 44 which are received in the 
receiving sections 50, 52 (see FIGS. 2 and 3). The inside surfaces 57, 59 
of the opposing side members 56, 58 respectively are free of any 
protrusions or projections intended to secure the tabs 40 to the 
tab-holder 34. Each inwardly curved end 42, 44 includes a rounded portion 
60, 62 respectively and square inner edges 64, 66 respectively. The square 
inner edges 64, 66 engage the edges 30, 32 of the flared base portion 38 
and help maintain the position of the tab 40 on the tab-holding member 34. 
The rounded portions 60, 62 make it easy for a tab-removing tool to obtain 
a purchase on the rounded portions 60, 62 during the tab removing 
operation. The protective ribs 28, 48 prevent a child's finger or finger 
nail from obtaining a purchase on either rounded portions 60, 62 of the 
curved ends 42, 44 respectively. The upper rib 68 and lower rib 70 (see 
FIG. 1) also prevent a child's finger from obtaining a purchase on the tab 
40. 
The slot or groove 72 accommodates the front end 36 of the tab-holding 
member 34. The flat inner surfaces 74, 76 of the curved ends 42, 44 are 
sufficiently wide enough so as to substantially span the surface area of 
the receiving sections 50, 52 to provide a relatively snug fit, and the 
overall fit of the tab 40 over the tab-holding member 34, while not tight, 
is relatively rocking free so as to further preclude removal of the tab 40 
by a child. 
Of course, a primary functional purpose of the size-indicating tab 40 is to 
prominently display the size of the garment as shown by the front end 46 
as seen in FIG. 5 and the side 56 as seen in FIG. 6. FIG. 7 is an 
illustration of the tab 40 mounted over a tab-holding member 34 (not shown 
in FIG. 7) of a tab-holding section 16. The channels 22, 24, 26 are narrow 
enough so as to preclude a small finger from extending upward through them 
in order to obtain a purchase on the rounded edge 62 of the tab 40. 
However, the channels 22, 24, 26 are wide enough to accommodate the 
fingers 78 of the tab-removing tool 80 shown in FIG. 9. 
Turning now to FIG. 9, a tab-removing tool 80 includes two opposing palms 
or members 82, 84 that are hingedly connected together via a living or 
mechanical hinge shown at 86. Because each side of the wall 20 of the 
tab-holding section 16 of the garment hanger 10 includes three channels 
like the channels 22, 24, 26 shown in FIG. 1, each distal end of the 
members 82, 84 include three fingers, all of which are shown at 78. 
Turning to FIG. 10, the shape of the fingers 78 is illustrated. Each finger 
curves inwardly and forwardly, using FIG. 14 as a reference, and 
terminates at a pointed distal end 88. The end 88 obtains the purchase on 
the rounded portion 60 or 62 of the curved end 42 or 44 of the tab 40. 
Each palm or member 82, 84 features an upwardly protruding wall 90, 92 
respectively and each wall 90, 92 includes a dog 94, 96 respectively. The 
dogs engage each other to restrict opening movement of the tab-removing 
tool as shown in FIG. 14. The inside portion of the palm 82 also includes 
a rib 98 which biases the palms 82, 84 outward to the open position shown 
in FIG. 14. 
Turning to FIGS. 15 through 19, the operation of the tab-removing tool 80 
and the method of removing a tab 40 from the garment hanger 10 is 
illustrated. Referring first to FIG. 15, the tab-removing tool 80 is 
aligned so the hinge 86 is parallel with the front end 46 of the tab 40. 
Because the rib 98 biases the palms 82, 84 toward an open position (see 
FIG. 14), the user simply pushes the tab-removing tool 80 in the direction 
of the arrow 100 toward the tab 40. The biased open position of the 
tab-removing tool 80 first shown in FIG. 14 is further illustrated in FIG. 
16. From FIG. 16, the forwardly curved shape of the fingers 78 provides 
for a smooth engagement between the fingers 78 and the opposing side 
members 56, 58 of the tab 40. The heights of the walls 90, 92 are adjusted 
so that the fingers 78 slide easily over the tab 40 to assume the position 
shown in FIG. 17. 
Turning now to FIG. 18, once the tab-removing tool 80 is disposed over the 
tab-holding section 16, the fingers 78 are in alignment with channels such 
as 26, 54 (see also FIG. 3) and to engage the distal ends 88 of the 
fingers with the rounded portions 60, 62 of the tab 40, the user presses 
the palms 82, 84 toward one another thereby causing the fingers 78 to 
extend forward through the channels 26, 54. As seen in FIG. 19, the distal 
ends 88 of the fingers 78 have slid under the rounded portions 60, 62 of 
the tab 40 and opposing side members 56, 58 of the tab 40 have been pried 
apart thereby enabling the tab 40 to be removed from the tab-holding 
member 34. As illustrated in FIG. 19, the tab-removing tool is simply 
pulled forward in a direction opposite to that shown in the arrow 100 and 
the tab-removing tool 80 and tab 40 are removed from the hanger 10. As 
seen in FIG. 19, as the pointed ends 88 of the fingers 78 slide under the 
curved ends 60, 62 of the tab 40, the square edges 64, 66 are lifted up 
and over the edges or steps 30, 32 of the flared base portion 38 of the 
tab-holding member 34. 
As illustrated in FIGS. 15 through 19, the tab 40 may be removed via the 
following method. The tab-removing tool 80 is aligned with the tab 40 and 
pushed forward over the tab 40 and over the tab-holding section 16. The 
two side palms 82, 84 are then squeezed together under moderate hand 
pressure which causes the fingers 78 to proceed through the corresponding 
channels 22, 24 or 26 toward the rounded portions 60, 62 of the inwardly 
curved ends 42, 44 of the tab 40. The distal pointed ends 88 of the 
fingers 78 slide underneath the rounded portions 60, 62 of the curved ends 
42, 44 and pry the opposing side members 56,58 apart. This action causes 
the square edges 64, 66 of the opposing side members to be lifted up over 
the steps or ledges 30, 32 of the flared based portion 38 of the 
tab-holding member 34. Once the square edges 64, 66 are lifted above the 
flared base portion 38 of the tab-holding member 34, the tab-removing tool 
and tab 40 may be pulled outward in a forward direction toward the user 
and off of the garment hanger 10. 
As noted above, the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 through 19 disclose the use 
of three channels per side. Embodiments featuring the use of only two 
channels or one channel per side may be employed and further only one 
channel overall need be provided in order to remove the tab 40 from the 
garment hanger 10. It has been found that the use of three channels 22, 
24, 26 per side of the tab-holding section 16 and three fingers 78 per 
opposing palm member 82, 84 of the tab-removing tool 80 facilitates the 
removal of the tabs 40 from the hanger 10. However, embodiments with fewer 
channels would still fall within the scope of the present invention. 
An alternative tab-removing tool 110 is illustrated in FIG. 20. In contrast 
to the opposing palms or members 82, 84 of the tab-removing tool 80 shown 
in FIG. 9, the tool 110 includes two hingedly connected members 112, 114 
that may be more appropriately referred to as legs 112, 114. The legs 112, 
114 are connected at a hinge section 116. The legs 112, 114 are biased in 
the outward direction as shown in FIG. 20 by the crossbar 118. 
Referring to FIGS. 20 and 22 together, each leg 112, 114 includes two 
abutment members. Leg 112 includes abutment members 120, 121; leg 114 
includes abutment members 122, 123. The abutment members 120, 121, 122, 
123 act to limit inward movement of the legs 112, 114 toward one another. 
Specifically, the inside surfaces 124a, 124b of the abutment members 120, 
121 respectively engage the inside surface 126 of the leg 114 when the 
legs 112, 114 of the tool 110 are pressed fully inward toward one another. 
Contemporaneously, the inside surfaces 129a, 129b of the abutment members 
122, 123 respectively engage the inside-facing surface 128 of the leg 112 
when the legs 112, 114 of the tool 110 are compressed fully inward toward 
one another. 
Referring collectively to FIGS. 20-23, the abutment members 120, 121 
include dogs 130, 131 which are accommodated in the slots 132, 133 
disposed in the abutment members 122, 123 respectively. Because of the 
spring bias affect of the cross bar 118 of the hinge 116 (see FIG. 20), 
the outside surfaces 134, 135 of the dogs 130, 131 respectively engage the 
inner ends 136, 137 of the slots 132, 133 respectively when the tool 110 
is in a relaxed state as illustrated in FIG. 27. The ridges shown at 138, 
139 provide finger grips at the distal ends of the legs 112, 114 
respectively. In a configuration which is similar to the one shown with 
respect to the tab-removing tool 80, the fingers illustrated generally at 
140 curve inwardly and terminate at a sharp edge indicated generally at 
141. The sharp edge 141, similar to the sharp edge 88 illustrated with 
respect to tool 80 above, obtains a purchase on the inwardly curved ends 
42, 44 of the size-indicating tab 40. 
Use of the tool 110 is illustrated in FIGS. 25-30 and is analogous to the 
use of the tool 80 as illustrated in Figures 15-19 above. Briefly, the 
tool 110 is aligned so the hinge 116 is approximately parallel to the 
front wall 46 of the size-indicating tab 40 as shown in FIG. 26. The tool 
110 is in the open position as shown in FIG. 27 with the dog 130 engaging 
the inside end 136 of the slot 132. The tool is then moved forward over 
and around the tab 40 as shown in FIG. 28. As the two legs 112,114 are 
squeezed inward toward one another as shown in FIG. 29, the sharp edges or 
ends 141 of the fingers 140 proceed upward through the channels 26 and 54 
toward the inwardly curved ends 42, 44 respectively of the tab 40. As 
shown in FIG. 30, as the legs 112, 114 are squeezed further inwardly 
toward one another by the operator, the sharp edges 141 of the fingers 140 
obtain a purchase on the inwardly curved ends 42, 44 and pry the opposing 
side members 56, 58 apart. Finally, the tool 110 is pulled outward or to 
the right as shown in FIG. 30 and the tab 140 is removed from the 
tab-holding section 16 of the hanger 10. The primary difference between 
the tab-removing tool 110 and the tab-removing tool 80 being that the 
tab-removing tool 110 includes two fingers per leg or member 112, 114 and 
the tab-removing tool 80 includes three fingers per palm or member 82, 84. 
The tab-removing tool 80 includes one finger 78 per channel such as 22, 
24, 26 and the tab-removing tool 110 includes fingers for the two outside 
channels such as 22, 26. 
Further, the tool illustrated in FIGS. 9-19 and the tool illustrated in 
FIGS. 20-30 are but two of several designs available for the tab-removing 
tool 80. For example, a tab-removing tool could be designed that could be 
applied from the backside of the tab-holding section 16 of the garment 
hanger, or through the open end of the hook 12. The hinge 86 may be 
replaced by other pivotal attachment means. Prongs could be provided for 
passing forward through the channels to dislodge the curved ends 42, 44 
from the receiving sections 50, 52. Another option would be to provide a 
hand tool with a finger or narrow shaft for extending through one of the 
channels to pry the tab 40 off of the tab-holding section 16. Other 
alternative designs will be apparently to those skilled in the art. 
Although only two preferred embodiments of the present invention have been 
illustrated and described, it will at once be apparent to those skilled in 
the art that variations may be made within the spirit and scope of the 
present invention. Accordingly, it is intended that the scope of the 
present invention be limited solely by the scope of the hereafter appended 
claims and not by any specific wording in the foregoing description.