Patent Publication Number: US-6209241-B1

Title: Garment hanger

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to improvements in indicators (or size caps) for garment hangers and, more particularly, to indicators which are removably coupled to a top portion of the garment hangers. 
     2. Description of Related Art 
     Various types of garment hangers employing size caps are known. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,322,902 and its Re-examination Certificate disclose an indicator for a garment hanger having a body portion containing indicia where the body portion includes a means for releasably attaching the indicator to a part of the hanger. 
     The &#39;902 patent also discloses an attaching means having a head shank having two separated portions which are resiliently deformable towards a central cavity to enable the head shank to be inserted into and removed from a slot or other opening formed in a display portion of a hanger. 
     The &#39;902 patent further discloses an indicating device having a shaped body including a wide base, a narrower top and a cavity having an entrance opening within the wide base for receiving a supporting means. The supporting means includes an enlarged head which is larger in size than an opening in the top of the indicator to enable the indicator to be engaged with the enlarged head. 
     Unfortunately, the prior art size caps and hangers, such as the hanger of the &#39;902 patent, are substantially complex and difficult and costly to manufacture, such as by injection molding or the like. Consequently, there is a need in the art for a size cap which is releasably coupled to a garment hanger, simple to use and inexpensive to manufacture. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     In order to overcome the disadvantages of the prior art, a garment hanger in accordance with the present invention includes a suspension hook adapted to engage a hook support and having an upper portion including at least a partial recess; and an indicator having front, rear, side, top and bottom portions, the front portion including a surface for displacing indicia, the partial recess being adapted to releasably receive at least a portion of the side or bottom portions of the indicator such that the indicator is releasably coupled to the suspension hook. 
     Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of the invention which refers to the accompanying drawings. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     The invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings. 
     FIG. 1 is a front view of a garment hanger in accordance with the present invention; 
     FIG. 2 is a front view of the garment hanger of FIG. 1 with the size cap removed from the hanger; 
     FIG. 3 shows rear and magnified views of the garment hanger of FIG. 2 which include additional details of the detachment feature of the present invention; 
     FIG. 3A is a magnified view of the garment hanger shown in FIG. 3; 
     FIG. 3B is a magnified view of the garment hanger shown in FIG. 3A; 
     FIG. 4 is a top view of the garment hanger of FIGS. 1-3; 
     FIG. 4A is a magnified view of the garment hanger shown in FIG. 4; 
     FIG. 5 shows front and magnified views of a garment hanger in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention; 
     FIG. 5A is a magnified view of the garment hanger shown in FIG. 5; 
     FIG. 5B is a magnified view of the garment hanger shown in FIG. 5A; 
     FIG. 6 is a front view of a garment hanger in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention; 
     FIG. 7 is a rear view of the garment hanger of FIG. 6; 
     FIG. 8 is a top view of the garment hanger shown in FIGS. 6-7; 
     FIG. 8A is a magnified view of the garment hanger shown in FIG. 8; 
     FIG. 9 is a front view of another embodiment of a garment hanger in accordance with the present invention; 
     FIG. 10 is a front view of another embodiment of a garment hanger in accordance with the present invention; 
     FIG. 11 is a side view of another embodiment of a garment hanger in accordance with the present invention; and 
     FIG. 12 is a front perspective view of yet another embodiment of a garment hanger in accordance with the present invention. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION 
     Referring to the drawings wherein like numerals indicate like elements there is shown in FIG. 1 a garment hanger  10  which may be formed from any of the known materials by any of the known techniques. Preferably, garment hanger  10  is made from plastic using an injection molding technique. 
     Garment hanger  10  includes a suspension hook  12  attached at its lower end to an elongated bar  14 . Bar  14  usually includes a garment support means at either end thereof (not shown). 
     Garment hanger  10  also includes an indicator (or size cap)  16  which is adapted to display any desirable indicia, such as the size of the garment being hung from the hanger  10  and/or the name of the manufacturer. 
     Referring to FIG. 2, size cap  16  includes side edges  16 A,  16 B, top and bottom edges  16 C,  16 D and front and rear surfaces  16 E,  16 F for displaying indicia. Preferably, size cap  16  is in the form of a substantially rectangular and flat plate having a height of about ½ inch from top edge  16 C to bottom edge  16 D and a width of about 1½ inches from side edge  16 A to side edge  16 B. It is also preferable that the size cap  16  have a thickness of about {fraction (1/16)} of an inch. 
     Garment hanger  10  is shown in FIG. 2 with size cap  16  removed from the suspension hook  12 . On top of suspension hook  12  there is an attachment portion  13  to attach size cap  16  to garment hanger  10 . Attachment portion  13  includes tab portions  18 A,  18 B that extend upwardly from opposite ends of a preferably substantially planar upper portion  12 A of suspension hook  12 . Attachment portion  13  further includes a support means  20  that also extends upwardly from the upper portion  12 A of the suspension hook  12 . Preferably, support means  20  is a substantially flat, planar plate which is substantially centrally located between tab portions  18 A,  18 B. Preferably, attachment portion  13  includes a mechanism which permits size cap  16  to be securely and detachably coupled to suspension hook  12 . 
     Referring now to FIG. 3, tab portions  18 A,  18 B include a cutaway  22  forming a notch  24 . Size cap  16  includes a protrusion  26  on each side edge  16 A,  16 B. Protrusions  26  are receivable within notches  24  such that protrusions  26  are snap-fittable into notches  24  and retain size cap  16  onto suspension hook  12 . Support means  20  is adapted to rest against at least one of the front or rear surfaces of size cap  16  such that side edges  16 A,  16 B of the size cap  16  cannot slip axially out of cutaways  22  of the tab portions  18 A,  18 B. 
     With reference to FIG. 4, the upper portion  12 A of the suspension hook  12  includes a base that is preferably circumscribed by the opposing lateral edges and opposing axial edges shown. It is preferred that support means  20  include a front surface  20 A which contacts one of the front and/or rear surfaces of size cap  16  when size cap  16  is attached to suspension hook  12 . It is most preferred that each of tab portions  18 A,  18 B include a surface  22 A in the area of the cutaway  22  which engages the other of the front and/or rear surfaces of size cap  16 . Thus, surfaces  22 A of tab portions  18 A,  18 B are spaced away from and define a plane which faces front surface  20 A of support means  20 . As will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the above teaching, surface  22 A may be laterally (left to right in FIG. 4) and axially displaced from front surface  20 A of support means  20  while still preventing the size cap  16  from slipping axially out of the cutaways  22 . 
     It is noted that surfaces  22 A of tab portions  18 A,  18 B and front surface  20 A of support means  20  form a cavity (or recess)  28  in which at least a portion of size cap  16  is received. With reference to FIG. 3, when size cap  16  is inserted into cavity  28 , tab portions  18 A,  18 B resiliently move outwardly from side edges  16 A,  16 B as protrusions  26  approach notches  24 . 
     Subsequently, protrusions  26  snap into notches  24  and tab portions  18 A,  18 B move inwardly to engage side edges  16 A,  16 B. 
     Size cap  16  may be easily released from suspension hook  12  by applying opposing forces F in the directions of the arrows (FIG.  3 ). Forces F cause tab portions  18 A,  18 B to move outwardly away from side edges  16 A,  16 B, respectively, thereby disengaging protrusions  26  from notches  24  and releasing size cap  16 . 
     Referring to FIGS. 3 and 4, size cap  16  may have one form of indicia (for example, a first garment size) on front surface  16 E and a different form of indicia (for example, a second garment size) on rear surface  16 F. When size cap  16  is coupled to suspension hook  12  such that rear surface  16 F is engaged with surface  20 A of support means  20 , the indicia on front surface  16 E of size cap  16  is visible but the indicia on rear surface  16 F of size cap  16  may be hidden. Conversely, when size cap is coupled to suspension hook  12  such that front surface  16 E is engaged with surface  20 A of support means  20 , the indicia on rear surface  16 F of size cap  16  is visible but the indicia on front surface  16 E of size cap  16  may be hidden. 
     Thus, one size cap  16  may be used to display different indicia (for example, different sized garments) by reversing the orientation of the surfaces  16 E,  16 F with respect to the suspension hook  20 . One skilled in the art from the above teaching will recognize that the size and shape of the support means  20  is selected to cover at least a portion of the indicia on the front and/or rear surfaces  16 E,  16 F to enable size cap  16  to be used for displaying different indicia. 
     Referring now to FIG. 5, an alternative embodiment of the invention is shown which more securely couples size cap  16  to suspension hook  12 . In particular, size cap  16  may include at least two protrusions  26 ,  26 A on each side edge  16 A,  16 B and each tab portion  18 A,  18 B may include at least two corresponding notches  24 ,  24 A. The protrusions  26 ,  26 A are receivable within notches  24 ,  24 A, respectively, such that protrusions  26 ,  26 A are snap-fittable into notches  24 ,  24 A and retain size cap  16  onto suspension hook  12 . 
     The use of at least two protrusions  26 ,  26 A and at least two notches  24 ,  24 A mitigates against the inadvertent separation of size cap  16  from suspension hook  12  which could result in loss of size cap  16  and/or present a safety hazard to children. 
     It is noted that size cap  16  can alternatively be coupled to suspension hook  12  without cutaway  22  or notch  24 . With such an alternative structure, the attachment portion  13  is constructed and arranged such that the size cap  16  fits between support means  20  and tab portions  18 A,  18 B (not shown) and is secured therebetween by a friction-fit. 
     Reference is now made to FIGS. 6 and 7 which show a suspension hook  12  of a garment hanger  10  in accordance with an alternative embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 shows a front view of suspension hook  12  while FIG. 7 shows a rear view thereof. The primary difference between suspension hook  12  of FIG.  6  and the suspension hook  12  of FIG. 1 is that support means  20  is positioned axially forward (i.e., in an axis coming out of the page) such that front surface  20 A of support means  20  is substantially co-planar with surfaces  22 A of tab portions  18 A,  18 B (FIG.  8 ). 
     Size cap  16  includes a recess  34  for receiving at least a portion of support means  20  (FIG.  7 ). More particularly, recess  34  includes an inside surface  34 A which contacts front face  20 A of support means  20 . Size cap  16  also includes cutaways  30 A,  30 B on respective side edges  16 A,  16 B for receiving at least part of tab portions  18 A,  18 B, respectively (best seen in FIG.  6 ). Cutaways  30 A,  30 B form surfaces  32 A,  32 B, respectively in size cap  16  for contacting surfaces  22 A of tab portions  18 A,  18 B. 
     Reference is now made to FIGS. 7 and 8. Unlike suspension hook  12  of FIG. 4, support means  20  of suspension hook  12  of FIG. 8 is moved axially forward towards tab portions  18 A,  18 B such that relatively short channels  36 A,  36 B are formed between cutaways  22  of tabs  18 A,  18 B and support means  20 . Cutaways  30 A,  30 B (FIG. 6) and recess  34  form tab portions  38 A,  38 B, respectively on size cap  16  (FIG.  7 ). Tab portions  38 A,  38 B are received in channels  36 A,  36 B, respectively, to firmly receive and couple size cap  16  to suspension hook  12 , preferably by a friction-fit. As shown in FIG. 8, the upper portion  12 A of the suspension hook  12  includes a base that is preferably circumscribed by the opposing lateral edges and the opposing axial edges. 
     With reference to FIG. 9, front surface  20 A of support means  20  preferably includes a protrusion  20 B, preferably a longitudinal protrusion (or ridge) and a notch  34 B disposed on inner surface  34 A of recess  34  to more firmly couple size cap  16  to suspension hook  12 . Preferably, notch  34 B is a longitudinal notch (or relatively shallow channel) for receiving protrusion  20 B therein. Thus, when size cap  16  is coupled to suspension hook  12 , protrusion  20 B operatively engages notch  34 B so that size cap  16  is securely engaged with suspension hook  12 . 
     It should be apparent to one skilled in the art in light of the above teaching that the front surface  16 E of size cap  16  of FIG. 9 may be flush with a front surface  12 A of suspension hook  12  because cutaways  30 A,  30 B (FIG. 6) may be adapted to receive tab portions  18 A,  18 B therein, thereby permitting size cap  16  to move axially forward and attain a flush position with suspension hook  12 . Likewise, when viewed from the rear (FIG. 7) recess  34  may be adapted to receive support means  20  therein such that support means  20  and tab members  38 A,  38 B are substantially flush, thereby giving the hanger  10  a more uniform appearance when size cap  16  is coupled to suspension hook  12 . 
     Referring now to FIG. 10, an alternative embodiment of the invention is shown which more securely couples size cap  16  to suspension hook  12 . In particular, front surface  20 A of support means  20  may include at least two protrusions  20 B,  20 C, preferably longitudinal protrusions (or ridges). Inner surface  34 A of recess  34  may include at least two corresponding notches  34 B,  34 C, preferably longitudinal notches (or relatively shallow channels) for receiving protrusions  20 B,  20 C therein. Thus, when size cap  16  is coupled to suspension hook  12 , protrusions  20 B,  20 C operatively engage notches  34 B,  34 C so that size cap  16  is securely engaged with suspension hook  12 . 
     The use of at least two protrusions  20 B,  20 C and at least two notches  34 B,  34 C mitigates against the inadvertent separation of size cap  16  from suspension hook  12  which could result in the loss of size cap  16  and/or the presentment of a safety hazard to children. 
     Reference is now made to FIG. 11 which shows a suspension hook  12  in accordance with another alternative embodiment of the present invention. The suspension hook  12  includes an upper portion  12 B having a recess  40  for receiving size cap  16 . Size cap  16  may be securely received within recess  40  using any of the known techniques, such as detents, protrusions, notches, flanges, and the like. Recess  40  may extend partially into upper portion  12 B or may extend through upper portion  12 B if desired. As would be apparent to one skilled in the art from the above teaching, upper portion  12 B of suspension hook  12  and the size cap  16  may be of any desired shape without departing from the scope of the invention. 
     Reference is now made to FIG. 12 which shows yet another alternative embodiment of the present invention. Suspension hook  12  includes a longitudinal channel  42  extending at least partially along a length of upper portion  12 A of suspension hook  12 . Size cap  16  includes a longitudinal flange  44  along at least a portion of a length of bottom edge  16 D. Longitudinal channel  42  and longitudinal flange  44  are sized and shaped such that longitudinal flange  44  is releasably received within longitudinal channel  42 . As is apparent to those skilled in the art from the above teaching, longitudinal flange  44  and longitudinal channel  42  may be adapted using any of the known techniques to securely couple size cap  16  to suspension hook  12 . 
     Although the present invention has been described in relation to particular embodiments thereof, many other variations and modifications and other uses will become apparent to those skilled in the art.