Abstract:
Perfect Shirt Hanger is a premium-quality, hook-topped collapsible shirt hanger, manufactured in injection-molded thermoplastic or wood having the collapsible shoulder and upper-arm portions contoured and shaped to provide a crease-free hang for the shirt or other garment, and is flared somewhat to further preserve the garment&#39;s natural shape.

Description:
CLAIM OF PRIORITY  
       [0001]    The present invention claims priority from U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/191,407, filed Sep. 8, 2008, of common title and inventorship herewith. 
     
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]    The present invention pertains to the field of clothing hangers and more specifically to the field of collapsible shirt hangers. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0003]    The prior art has put forth several variation on retractable clothing hangers. These include: 
         [0004]    U.S. Pat. No. 7,036,696 to Lam wherein is disclosed a foldable and self-opening garment hanger. Lam&#39;s hanger comprises a resilient force such as a spring for opening the hanger. 
         [0005]    U.S. Pat. No. 5,690,257 to Ward discloses a folding hanger for garments and the like. The hanger of Ward comprises 2 wings, one of which has an integral hook for engaging a closet rod or the like, wherein the two wings latch together. 
         [0006]    U.S. Pat. No. 5,383,584 to Adams describes a foldable hanger. The hanger of this invention comprises two arms and a central link. The central link is attached to the hook for engaging the closet rod. The link also comprises a latch for engagement of the arms. 
         [0007]    None of these prior art devices describe or contemplate the collapsible hanger of the present invention. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0008]    President Thomas Jefferson invented a wooden coat hanger in the early 1800s, but it wasn&#39;t until the 1930s that modern, wire coat hangers were in universal use. Coat hangers are a good alternative to folding shirts, a good way to keep shirts from getting creased and wrinkled, but because the coat hanger frame is rigid, taking a shirt off a hanger is also, unfortunately, a good way to tear or otherwise damage the shirt. The invention to be discussed in this report is an improvement on the coat or shirt hanger, and is marketed to both household consumers and retailers. 
         [0009]    Recognizing the potential to create a better shirt hanger, a new product, entitled the Perfect Shirt Hanger was invented. Simply stated, the Perfect Shirt Hanger is a premium-quality, hook-topped shirt hanger, manufactured in injection-molded thermoplastic by the plastics products industry, Standard Industrial Code 3089. (The Perfect Shirt Hanger could alternatively be manufactured in wood, at a considerably higher cost.) The shoulder and upper-arm portions of the Perfect Hanger are contoured and shaped to provide a crease-free hang for the shirt or other garment, and is flared somewhat to further preserve the garment&#39;s natural shape. 
         [0010]    One embodiment is contemplated to be injection molded out of inexpensive plastic for the retail trade. 
         [0011]    An alternative embodiment is contemplated to be a slightly heavier version for general consumer use. 
         [0012]    A further alternative embodiment comprises a cedar version for more affluent consumers. 
         [0013]    A further alternative embodiment comprises a spring actuated means for ease of opening the hanger. 
         [0014]    It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved collapsible hanger. 
         [0015]    This invention is directed to a foldable garment hanger of unitary plastic construction which incorporates a pair of opposed, pivotable, garment-supporting arms that can be articulated between open (i.e., unfolded and assembled) and closed (i.e., folded and disassembled) positions. 
         [0016]    The articulation is achieved by means of a combination of hinges and an integral interconnecting link that extends between the shoulders of the arms. 
         [0017]    Latches are provided for maintaining the arms in their respective fully open (i.e., fully assembled) and fully closed (i.e., fully disassembled) positions. 
         [0018]    The hanger is simple and easy for the user to open or closed. 
         [0019]    Moreover, the hanger employs relatively few flexible interconnections and interconnected movable parts, and incorporates a simple, reliable latching mechanism. 
         [0020]    The hanger is believed to offer features and use advantages, including structural simplicity and reliability, that have not previously been available so far as now known in a foldable plastic garment hanger. 
         [0000]    These and other objects, aims, purposes, features, benefits, advantages, embodiments and the like will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the present specification taken with the accompanying drawings. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
         [0021]      FIG. 1  is a front view of the collapsible hanger of the present invention showing the arm sections in the folded position. 
           [0022]      FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the collapsible hanger of the present invention showing the arm sections in the upright position. 
           [0023]      FIG. 3  shows the collapsible hanger of the present invention in use. 
           [0024]      FIG. 4  shows an exploded view of the hanger of the present invention. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0025]    The Perfect Shirt Hanger, a shirt hanger featuring quick-release shoulders that fold down to allow a garment to simply glide off, presents a number of distinct and significant benefits and advantages. Foremost, the Perfect Shirt Hanger provides for crease-free hanging in a closet or on a retail store&#39;s racks, yet protects shirts and other garments from the tearing, ripping, and pulling that so often occur in removing garments from standard hangers. To the household consumer, of course, the Perfect Shirt Hanger means enhanced conservation and protection of valued garments; to a retail store operator, the Perfect Shirt Hanger means less damage to costly inventory. 
         [0026]    One distinguishing feature of the Perfect Shirt Hanger is the ability of its two shoulder/upper-arm supports to fold downward, such that a shirt or other garment (dress, coat, jacket, sweater) could simply glide down off the hanger. This feature is achieved by equipping the two arms of the hanger with hinges, these hinges operated by a pair of spring-release locks at the base of the hanger&#39;s hook. A pair of molded release clips, one on either side of the hanger hook&#39;s shaft, is pressed together, releasing the locks and allowing the two arms of the hanger to fold downward vertically, and thus allow the shirt or other garment to simply slide down off the hanger with no possibility of ripping, stretching or tearing. 
         [0027]    The Perfect Shirt Hanger is simple to use, requires no assembly or maintenance, and is sturdy enough to provide many years of reliable service. 
         [0028]    The Perfect Hanger can be produced in several versions to accommodate the needs of retailers, average consumers, and more affluent consumers. 
         [0029]    Simple in concept and designed for single-handed operation, the Perfect Shirt Hanger constitutes a vast improvement on the standard hangers now universally in use, suggesting an enormous potential market for this product. 
         [0030]    A folding or collapsible shirt hanger, the shoulder sections of which fold downward to allow the shirt or other garment to safely glide off the hanger, the Perfect Shirt Hanger protects shirts, jackets, and other upper-body garments from tearing, ripping, or stretching when being removed from their hangers. Cleverly designed and eminently useful, the Perfect Shirt Hanger presents a considerable advance on the technology of garment hangers, and as such will find a wide and enthusiastic market among both the consumer households and clothing retailers. 
         [0031]    Turning to  FIG. 2 , Hanger  10  incorporates a pair of arms  11  and  12  which can be articulated in longitudinally opposed relationship to each other between a fully open position as shown in  FIG. 2 , and a fully closed position as shown in  FIG. 1 . Various plastics can be employed; however, it is presently preferred to employ a thermoplastic polypropylene (including homopolymers, copolymers with other monomers, polyblends or the like) due to the capacity of such a polymer to be molded into a body. 
         [0032]    Each arm  11  and  12  is generally symmetrically configured and similarly sized relative to the other arm. 
         [0033]    In hanger  10  assembly, the upward and outward movement of the arm  11  relative to the arm  12  is limited by the edge  24  of central portion  28 . When the arms  11  and  12  are in their extended and hanger  10  assembled, unfolded, and normal use configuration as shown in  FIG. 2 , the lower straight section of central portion  28  abuttingly engage and thereby limit or prevent further pivotal extension of the arms  11  and  12 . 
         [0034]    Thus, the arm  11  is pivotable relative to central portion  28  and the arm  12  is pivotable relative to central portion  28 . Central portion  28  acts as the pivotal portion of a hinge during pivotal movements of the arms  11  and  12 . 
         [0035]    A hook  19  that is conveniently sized for engagement over a closet bar (not shown) or the like outwardly extends from integral association with central portion  28 . Although alternative hook connecting arrangements and locations are possible, the presently preferred one is as shown in the  FIG. 2  and involves the positioning of the base of hook  19  in the region of the joining between the arms  11  and  12  on central portion  28 . 
         [0036]    To stabilize and secure the arms  11  and  12  in the assembled hanger  10  use configuration shown in  FIG. 2 , a latch assembly is provided. Various latch assemblies and variations in latch assembly location can be used. Preferably, hanger  10  employs a latch assembly clip  14  that is positioned just above the pivot point of arms  11  and  12  on central portion  28 . 
         [0037]    Preferably, the interrelationship between the latch assembly clip  14  and the hook  19  is such that, when hanger  10  is fully assembled and latched, and the hook  19  is engaged fully and properly with a closet bar (not shown), the hanger  10  is in a centered and balanced relationship so that the arms  11  and  12  tend to hang in equally spaced relationship relative to the closet bar. 
         [0038]    Thus, the arms  11  and  12 , the central portion  28 , and the hook  19  are interconnected with one another and movable relative to one another. These sections are, as shown, preferably generally equally spaced from one another, when the hanger  10  is in its collapsed or storage configuration. 
         [0039]    The hanger  10  is openable from a disassembled storage configuration as into an assembled use configuration as shown in  FIG. 2  with one hand, and also hanger  10  is closable from the assembled use configuration into the disassembled storage configuration with one hand. 
         [0040]    In an alternative embodiment, the arms are spring loaded and actuated by the pressing of a button mounted on the central portion. When the button is pressed, the arms spring open into the ready to use position. 
         [0041]    Although this invention has been described with respect to specific embodiments, it is not intended to be limited thereto and various modifications which will become apparent to the person of ordinary skill in the art are intended to fall within the spirit and scope of the invention as described herein taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and the appended claims.