Patent Publication Number: US-8973628-B2

Title: Portable purse strap hook

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/660,496, filed Jun. 15, 2012. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to supports, and particularly to a portable retainer and support for purses, handbags and the like. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     Purses, handbags and the like are typically carried by the user to numerous locations throughout the day. When using a public restroom or visiting similar unsanitary locations, there is often no hygienic surface for supporting the purse or handbag while the user makes use of the facilities. The floors of such locations are not cleaned often enough to reliably rest the purse or handbag thereon, and not all public restroom stalls are provided with hooks for supporting the purse or handbag off above the floor. It would be desirable to provide a portable hook device which could be carried by the user in the purse or handbag for use in such situations. 
     Thus, a portable purse strap hook solving the aforementioned problems is desired. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The portable purse strap hook is a retainer for purse straps that is slidably and removably mounted on a purse strap. The portable purse strap hook includes a flexible sheet having opposed inner and outer surfaces. At least one releasable fastener is disposed on the sheet for releasably fastening laterally opposed ends of the flexible sheet to one another. The at least one releasable fastener may be a snap fastener, such that a male portion thereof is attached to one of the laterally opposed ends of the flexible sheet, and a female portion thereof is attached to the other one of the laterally opposed ends of the flexible sheet. 
     A hook is pivotally secured to the inner surface of the flexible sheet. Preferably, the hook includes opposed free and fixed ends, the hook portion being formed on the free end. The fixed end is pivotally secured to either the male or the female portion of the snap fastener. In use, when the flexible sheet is in an open configuration, the purse strap may be positioned to extend longitudinally across a central portion of the inner surface of the flexible sheet. The at least one releasable fastener is then fastened to secure the sheet around the purse strap, the flexible sheet in the closed configuration forming a sliding cuff about the purse strap. The hook is pivotally deployable from within the flexible sheet to extend outwardly therefrom. 
     These and other features of the present invention will become readily apparent upon further review of the following specification and drawings. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a portable purse strap hook according to the present invention. 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the portable purse strap hook of  FIG. 1  in an open configuration. 
         FIG. 3  is a perspective view of the portable purse strap hook of  FIG. 1  in a closed configuration, showing the hook in a stored state. 
     
    
    
     Similar reference characters denote corresponding features consistently throughout the attached drawings. 
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     As shown in  FIG. 1 , the portable purse strap hook  10  is slidably and removably mounted on a purse strap S. It should be understood that the portable purse strap hook  10  may be used with any type of purse, handbag or any other article including a strap or the like. As best shown in  FIG. 2 , the portable purse strap hook  10  includes a flexible sheet  12  having opposed inner and outer surfaces  14 ,  16 , respectively. At least one releasable fastener is disposed on the sheet  12  for releasably fastening laterally opposed ends or sides of the flexible sheet  12  to one another. Although shown as being square in  FIG. 2 , it should be understood that flexible sheet  12  may have any desired dimensions or configuration. Exemplary dimensions for the flexible sheet  12  corresponding to the example shown in  FIG. 2  include a lateral width of approximately four inches and a longitudinal length of approximately four inches. The flexible sheet  12  may be formed from any suitable type of material, such as leather, fabric or the like. 
     Any suitable type of releasable fastener may be utilized. In the preferred embodiment, the releasable fastener is a snap fastener. As shown in  FIGS. 1-3 , a pair of snap fasteners are provided, although it should be understood that any desired number of fasteners, or any type of fasteners (e.g., mating hook and loop fasteners, a zipper, buttons etc.), may be utilized. In the embodiment illustrated, a male portion  20  of the snap fastener is secured to one of the laterally opposed ends of the flexible sheet  12 , and a corresponding female portion  22  is secured to the other one of the laterally opposed ends of the flexible sheet  12 . Using the exemplary dimensions given above for flexible sheet  12 , the male and female portions  20 ,  22  are preferably positioned approximately one-quarter of an inch from the corresponding laterally-opposed edges of the flexible sheet  12 . 
     A hook  18  is pivotally secured to the inner surface  14  of the flexible sheet  12 . Preferably, the hook  18  includes opposed free and fixed ends, the hook portion being formed on the free end thereof. The fixed end, as shown, is pivotally secured to one of the male and female portions  20 ,  22  of the snap fastener. In  FIG. 2 , the fixed end of hook  18  is shown as being pivotally secured to one of the female portions  22 , although it should be understood that the hook  18  may alternatively be secured to one of the male portions  20 , or may be separately attached to the sheet  12  by a rivet or other pivot pin. Using the exemplary dimensions given above, the hook  18  is preferably approximately between one and one-half and two inches in length, allowing it to easily fit between the two female portions  22  when folded, as shown in solid lines in the configuration shown in  FIG. 2 . The hook  18  may be formed from any suitable material, such as flat brass or the like. An eyelet formed through the fixed end of the hook  18  is dimensioned to securely engage with the corresponding female fastener portion  22 . 
     In use, when the flexible sheet  12  is in an open configuration (as in  FIG. 2 ), the purse strap S may be positioned to extend longitudinally across a central portion of the inner surface  14  of the flexible sheet  12 . The at least one releasable fastener is then fastened to hold the purse strap within the flexible sheet  12 . The flexible sheet  12 , in the closed configuration, forms a sliding sleeve or cuff about the purse strap S, as shown in  FIG. 3 . The hook  18  is pivotally deployable from within the flexible sheet  12  to extend outwardly therefrom, as in  FIG. 1 . This allows the purse associated with the purse strap S to be suspended from any desired support surface, such as a stall door or the like. In the closed configuration, the hook  18  pivoted to the stored state. The portable purse hook  10  may be easily carried within the purse or handbag for use as needed. 
     It is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, but encompasses any and all embodiments within the scope of the following claims.