Abstract:
A wall mounted hanger is of flexible wire construction including arcuate wire segments for insertion through an opening in the wall for endwise wall contact. The wire segments oppositely extend through the wall and merge with upwardly curved wire segments to form a hook. A modified wall hanger further includes multiple vertically spaced hooks supported by a wall and a wall abutting plate and fasteners for wall insertion. A still further modification includes wire segments extending outwardly from a wall and forming juxtaposed hooks for reception of a curtain or drapery rod with wire segments continuing to form a brace supported by a wall abutting plate.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention concerns hangers of wire construction for installation on an interior wall of a structure. 
     Hangers for use in the home or other buildings often include expansible members for insertion through a wall opening for load bearing contact with the back or inner side of a wall. Such hangers require a somewhat large opening to be made in the wall. Further, their installation requires some degree of skill and are not easily removed from a wall. Other wall hanger devices utilize wall inserted collets inserted into an oversize opening and which expand into load bearing contact with the wallboard or gypsum board. Other wall mounted hangers require insertion into a wall stud necessitating a certain degree of skill. 
     Complicating the installation and use of wall hangers is the apparently lessening quality of sheet rock (gypsum board) wall material which are presently manufactured from waste or reclaimed wallboard material. A still further drawback to know expansible wall hangers is the problem of removing a permanently mounted expansible hanger which typically entails the resurfacing of the opening area. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 3,219,302 discloses a wall hanger of “stiff yet flexible wire construction” having an irregular inserted segment, a horizontal segment or segments for wall installation and exteriorly disposed vertical and horizontal segments. A further form of the wall hanger terminates in a hook. The short radius bends of the hanger would result in insertion of the hanger through a wall necessitating a wall opening of objectionable size. Further, the right angular bends of the hanger would tend to render any hole formed by insertion of the bends unsightly. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 3,312,442 discloses an insertable wall hanger of plate stock requiring a tubular sleeve be inserted in the wall opening. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 3,273,844 discloses a wall hanger or display hook for use on corrugated cardboard with large, flat load disbursing surfaces with one of said surfaces being insertable through a slot defined by the cardboard. A projection or tooth also penetrates the cardboard. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 4,103,854 discloses a wall mounted hanger of one piece construction having an upper end for abutment with the back side of a wall and requires a wall opening of unusual configuration with a reduced area for cooperation with a canted arm having an end for locked engagement with the area defining edges. The wall hanger is designed for use with thin panels backed by foamed insulation material. The one piece device is of thermoplastic material. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 4,485,995 discloses a wall hanger having a single wall penetrating angular or curved portion terminating in engagement with the back side of a wall with a straight segment received within a wall opening. A plate member for contact with the frontal wall surface has a hook formed at its lower end. The shaped wire component is formed from a single run of wire stock. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 4,619,430 discloses a wire hanger having a curved segment for contact with the back side of a wall and a downwardly turned exterior wire segment secured to a wall plate having a hook at its lower end, 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,149,037 discloses a one piece wall hanger having a curved portion for wall insertion and abutment. A wall engaging pin is carried by an exposed portion of the molded hanger. 
     SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION 
     The present invention is embodied in wall hanger construction wherein wire is shaped to support a wide range of loads particularly on wall material commonly used in home construction 
     In one embodiment of the invention, a light gauge length of flexible wire is formed with a pair of arcuate segments for endwise abutment at spaced apart points with the back side of a wall. Juxtaposed straight segments occupy a wall aperture while depending straight segments are for rested engagement against the front side of the wall. Curved segments of hanger wire terminate or merge with one another at a reverted extremity of the hanger. 
     A heavy duty wall hanger, for example, for the support of a mirror on a wall, includes a hanger of medium gauge wire wherein arcuate segments each penetrate the wall through a separate aperture and terminate at their ends in endwise abutment with the back side of the wall. Discs on wall located straight segments of the hanger protect the wall surface and serve to reinforce the straight segments. 
     A further embodiment of the invention includes a wall hanger where arcuate wall segments are located rearwardly of a wall and in abutment therewith with straight segments extending through the wall and through a plate component. The two wire segments are outwardly and upwardly curved to form a first hook and subsequently are directed downwardly toward the wall surface and then again curved upwardly to provide a second or supplemental hook. Fastener means secure the second hook against applied loads. 
     A still further form of the wall hanger includes a pair of arcuate segments for endwise abutment with the back side of a wall with straight segments occupying separate apertures in the wall and extending outwardly therefrom and merging with hook segments of generally semicircular configuration. Continuing wire segments project downwardly and toward the wall surface to form a brace for the curved hook segments and ultimately are secured to a plate by fastening means which may protrude into the wall surface to stabilize the hanger. The hook segments may be dimensioned to receive curtain or drapery rods typically an inch or so in diameter. 
     A further form of hanger is adapted to support a closet or curtain rod and includes reverted wire segments and semicircular wire segments the latter receiving a rod end. Each semicircular wire segment merges with brace segments which form an eye for screw reception. 
     Important objectives of the present invention include the provision of a wall hanger suitable for small and medium sized articles which is made from low cost wire and installed through a single aperture in a wall member to provide spaced apart points of contact with the wall for optimum strength; the provision of a wall hanger of light gauge wire which includes arcuate segments which may be displaced toward one another for wall insertion through a single wall opening to minimize disfigurement of a wall surface; the provision of a wall hanger of medium gauge wire having arcuate segments each for penetration of the wall through separate apertures with the hanger reinforced by discs in abutment with the front side of the wall; the provision of a wall hanger having multiple hooks thereon particularly suited for supporting clothing and hats, and including a plate structure disbursing load imparted forces over the frontal surface of the wall with arcuate segments of the hanger in abutment with the rear surface of the wall; the provision of a hanger particularly suited for supporting curtain or drapery rods and having arcuate segments terminating in wall abutment and also forwardly projecting straight segments merging into curved hook segments for reception of a curtain or drapery rod. A continuation of the wire segments projects downwardly and rearwardly toward the wall surface and thereat receives a fastener securing a reverted portion of the hanger to a wall abutting plate. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     In the accompanying drawings: 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a wall hanger formed from flexible light gauge wire; 
     FIG. 2 is a side elevational view of the hook shown in FIG. 1 in place on a sectioned wall; 
     FIG. 3 is a front elevational view taken from the right hand side of FIG. 2 with the wall removed and illustrating the flexible feature of the wall hanger; 
     FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a modified wall hanger; 
     FIG. 5 is a side elevational view of the wall hanger shown in FIG. 4 operatively disposed on a wall section; 
     FIG. 6 is an elevational view taken from the right hand side of FIG. 5 with the wall removed; 
     FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a modified form of the wall hanger showing multiple hooks; 
     FIG. 8 is a side elevational view of the hook shown in FIG. 7 operatively disposed in a wall section; 
     FIG. 9 is a front elevational view taken from the right hand side of FIG. 8 with the wall removed; 
     FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a wall hanger operatively disposed supporting a drapery rod on a wall not show; 
     FIG. 11 is a side elevational view of one of the hangers shown in FIG. 10 in place within a supporting wall section; and 
     FIG. 12 is an elevational view of the wall hanger shown in FIG. 11 taken from the right hand side thereof removed from the wall. 
     FIG. 13 is a downward perspective view of a modified hanger for closet and curtain rods. 
     FIG. 14 is a side elevational view of the hanger of FIG. 13 in place on a wall, and 
     FIG. 15 is a front elevational view of FIG.  13 . 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     With continuing attention to the drawings wherein reference numerals indicate parts similarly hereinafter identified, the reference numeral  1  indicates generally a wall hanger constructed from light gauge wire preferably of steel and approximately {fraction (1/32)}th of an inch diameter. 
     Arcuate wire segments at  2  and  3  each terminate at ends  2 A and  3 A while oppositely the wire segments merge into straight segments at  4  and  5 . The wire is formed so that straight segments  4  and  5  are juxtaposed to permit insertion into a small aperture  6  in a wall  7  which, in contemporary homes, is usually sheet rock or gypsum board having a mineral composition with paper inner and outer surfaces  8  and  9 . The juxtaposed straight segments  4  and  5  continue outwardly to form a hook generally at  10  having juxtaposed depending segments  11  and upwardly directed segments  13  and  14 , both of which terminate in a 180 degree bend or reverted segment  15 . As shown in FIG. 2, the depending straight segments  11  and  12  rest in contact with wall surface  9  and held thereagainst by the action of arcuate members  2  and  3 . 
     For installation of hanger  1  and with reference to FIG. 3, the arcuate segments  2  and  3  are momentarily biased to the broken line position by fingertip pressure to enable insertion of the segments through a relatively small wall opening  6 . Upon passage through the openings the segments  2  and  3  as inherently shaped during manufacture will assume their normal spaced apart positions shown in FIG. 1 with segments ends  2 A- 3 A in biased contact with back wall surface  8 . The flexible nature of the wire allows flexing of arcuate segments  2  and  3  during insertion through opening  6 . The juxtaposed wire segments at  4 ,  5  and  11 ,  12  will bear respectively upon the surfaces in opening  6  and front wall  9 . Extraction of the hanger is achieved by upward and outward rotation of hook portion  10  which draws arcuate segments  2  and  3  through opening  6 . 
     With attention now to a modified hook shown in FIG. 4, the same is constructed from somewhat heavier gauge wire approximately {fraction (3/32)} of an inch in diameter and is best suited for the support of heavy articles such as mirrors and large framed pictures. Arcuate segments at  22  and  23  each terminate at ends  22 A and  23 A with the segments merging with straight segments  24  and  25  for disposition in wall openings as at  26 . Discs at  28  and  29  are each apertured to admit wire passage. A hook portion generally at  30  includes downwardly convergent wire segments  31  and  32  which merge with straight segments  33 ,  34  of hook portion  30 . An upwardly directed reverted bend is at  35 . Hook portion  30  transfers a load to wall  27  defining openings  26  which receives straight runs  24  and  25  of the hanger while discs as at  28  bear against the outer or front wall surface. 
     With attention to FIGS. 7 through 9 a wall hanger is disclosed, which may termed a clothes hanger in that it is suited for the support of multiple articles such as clothing and headwear. Arcuate segments of wire are shown at  40  and  41  with ends at  40 A and  41 A for wall contact. Segments  40  and  41  merge downwardly with straight segments as at  42  and  43 . A first hook portion generally at  47  of the hanger includes wire segments at  48  and  49  which terminate outwardly and upwardly in reverted bends  50  and  51 . A second or supplemental hook portion indicated generally at  52  includes inclined wire segments  54  and  55  which terminate eyelets at  56  and  57  each receiving fasteners  58 . Upwardly curved segments  60  and  61  merge to form a reverted bend  63 . Contributing to hanger strength is a plate  64  apertured to receive fasteners  58 . 
     In FIGS. 10 through 12, a wall hanger is shown for the support of a curtain or drapery rod  70 . The modified form of wall hanger includes arcuate segments  72  and  73  which terminate at ends  72 A and  73 A for contact with the back side of a wall  74 . Straight segments at  75  and  76  extend forwardly through a pair of wall openings as at  77 . The straight segments  75  and  76  project forwardly to form hooks generally at  80  and  81 . Each hook portion  80  and  81  includes upwardly curved segments  82  and  83  terminating in reverted bends  84  and  85 . For bracing of the hook portions of the hanger, inclined wire segments at  86  and  87  each serve as a brace and terminate in angular end segments  88 ,  89  which merge to form an eyelet  90  for reception of a fastener  91 . A plate  92  for wall abutment may serve as a template when removed from the wire segments for marking of a wall for drilling or punching of openings therethrough. Further, the plate serves to support hooks  80  and  81  against loads imparted by curtain or drape supporting rod  70 . Offsets at  93 ,  94  in each straight segment  75 - 76  confine plate  92  in place against a frontal surface of wall  74 . 
     In FIG. 13, a wall hanger is shown for the support of a closet or curtain rod of circular cross section at  100 . Arcuate hanger segments at  101  and  102  terminate at ends  101 A and  102 A. When installed in a wall  103 , provided with spaced apart openings as at  104  the ends abut the inner or back side of the wall at  105 . Each arcuate segment respectively merges with a straight wire segment at  106  and  107  which in turn terminate in upwardly directed curved wire segments  108  and  109 . Reverted wire segments at  110  and  111  merge with upright semicircular segments at  112  and  113  formed on a radius to receive rod  100  and merge at their lower ends with brace segments as at  114  and  115 . The last mentioned segments extend to jointly form an eye  116  for the reception of a screw fastener  117 . A wall abutting plate  118  is apertured to receive a fastener  117  and, adjacent the plate upper edge, defines a pair of apertures through which extend straight wire segments  106  and  107 . Rod imparted loads to the hanger are borne by fastener  117  and plate  118  which transfers such loads to wire straight segments  106 ,  107  and to arcuate segments  101  and  102 . To facilitate lateral insertion of a curtain or closet rod reverted wire segments  110  and  111  may be tangential, i.e., bent upwardly per the arrows of FIG. 14 to facilitate downward rod insertion. 
     While I have shown but a few embodiments of the invention, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the invention may be embodied still otherwise without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. 
     Having thus described the invention, what is desired to be secured by a Letters Patent is: