Abstract:
A method of hanging an article on a wall comprises attaching at least one hanger to an end face of the article, the hanger having a first end adapted to attach to the end face and a second end adapted to contact an inner surface of the wall. The hanger is curved in shape so that a portion of the second end is generally parallel to a plane of the wall after the article is attached to the wall. The second end of the hanger is passed through the wall for a sufficient distance and then the article is rotated so that the second end contacts the inner surface of the wall and the end face of the article rests against an outer surface of the wall. One or more hangers can be combined with the article for hanging purposes.

Description:
[0001]    This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) based on provisional patent application No. 61/064,710 filed on Mar. 21, 2008. 
     
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    The present invention is relates to a method and associated hardware for hanging articles such as shelves, towel racks, toilet paper holders and the like on walls to give the impression that no visible means of support are provided to accomplish the hanging function. 
       BACKGROUND ART 
       [0003]    There are numerous types of hardware to hang pictures and the like. One type is called a Hercules hook. This hanger is made from a wire, that is designed with one end to penetrate drywall. The other end has a hook configuration, which protrudes from the wall and permits an:item to be hung on the hook. While this hook takes the place of a conventional wire and nail hanging system, it does not easily work for hanging shelves. 
         [0004]    Therefore, a need exists for improved hardware to hang shelves and other articles. The present invention provides this need via a method for hanging a shelf or other article without the need for fasteners, braces, and other conventional hanging hardware. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0005]    It is an object of the invention to provide an improved method of hanging shelves and other articles such as towel racks, toilet paper holders and the like. 
         [0006]    Another object of the invention is to provide improved hardware to accomplish the inventive method. 
         [0007]    Other objects and advantages will be come apparent as a description of the invention proceeds. 
         [0008]    In one mode, the invention entails an improved method of hanging an article, particularly a shelf. The method comprises attaching at least one hanger to an end face of the article, the hanger having a first end adapted to attach to the end face and a second end adapted to contact an inner surface of the wall. The hanger is curved in shape so that a portion of the second end is generally parallel to a plane of the wall after the article is attached to the wall. The second end is passed through the wall for a sufficient distance and the article is rotated so that the second end contacts the inner surface of the wall and the end face of the article rests against an outer surface of the wall. 
         [0009]    The method can also entail attaching a brace element along at least a top surface of the article and against the outer surface of the wall to act against upward forces applied to the article. The one or more hangers can be attached to one of a shelf, toilet paper holder, towel rack, and cabinet or other article suited for wall hanging. The attachment of the first end of the hanger to the end face of the article can be accomplished by a threaded connection. The second end can be circular, square, or rectangular in cross section. The brace element can be attached to the shelf using a dovetail connection or dowels. When the article is a towel rack, the brace element can be attached to legs of the towel rack. 
         [0010]    The invention also relates to an article and hanger combination for attaching the article to a wall comprising an article having one or more end faces and at least one hanger. The hanger has a first end configured to attach to the end face of the article and a second end adapted to contact an inner surface of the wall. The hanger is curved in shape so that second end is generally parallel to a plane of the wall after the article is attached to the wall. Again, the article can be any one of a shelf, towel rack, toilet paper holder, and cabinet. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0011]      FIG. 1A  shows one embodiment of the hanger of the invention. 
           [0012]      FIG. 1B  shows the end of a second embodiment of the inventive hanger. 
           [0013]      FIG. 1C  shows a third embodiment of the inventive hanger. 
           [0014]      FIG. 2  shows one embodiment of the inventive shelf. 
           [0015]      FIG. 3A  shows a first step in installing the shelf of  FIG. 2 . 
           [0016]      FIG. 3B  shows a second step in the installation process. 
           [0017]      FIG. 3C  shows a third installation step. 
           [0018]      FIG. 4  shows the shelf in a wall of  FIG. 2  in a marking position. 
           [0019]      FIG. 5A  shows an installed shelf for one wall thickness. 
           [0020]      FIG. 5B  shows the shelf of  FIG. 5A  installed on a different thickness wall. 
           [0021]      FIG. 6  is a perspective view of a towel rack embodiment of the invention. 
           [0022]      FIG. 7  shows the towel rack of  FIG. 6  as installed. 
           [0023]      FIG. 8  shows another embodiment of the towel rack of the invention. 
           [0024]      FIG. 9  shows a shelf and brace combination. 
           [0025]      FIG. 10A  shows another embodiment of the shelf and brace combination. 
           [0026]      FIG. 10B  shows another variation of the shelf and brace combination. 
           [0027]      FIG. 11  shows another particle being held against a wall. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
       [0028]    The present invention provides a unique way to hang a shelf or other article so as to give the impression that the shelf is floating on the wall. To accomplish this purpose, a pair of hangers  1  is provided, with one shown in  FIG. 1A . The hanger has a wall entry end  3  and an article attachment end  5 . The wall entry end  3  includes a surface  7  designed to contact an inner surface of the wall intended to receive the article. The article attachment end  5  is configured to attach to the article to be hung. In the embodiment of  FIG. 1A , the attachment is in the form of a screw threaded end  9  that is designed to be screwed into the article being hung. Of course, the end  9  could have machine threaded end to mate with a correspondingly sized female threaded opening on the article. 
         [0029]      FIGS. 1B and 1C  show alternatives for the wall entry end  3 . In  FIG. 1B , the end  3 ′ is pointed to facilitate wall entry using hanger itself. In the end view of  FIG. 1C , the end  3 ″, is rectangular in cross section with an enlarged surface  7 ′ to enhance contact with the inner surface of the wall. 
         [0030]    Referring to  FIG. 2 , a shelf  10  is shown that is to be hung on a wall. To accomplish this, at least two of the hangers  1  are mounted to the shelf with an appropriate spacing therebetween. In this embodiment, the hanger  1  has a screw threaded end  9  for attachment purposes. 
         [0031]      FIGS. 3A-3B  shows how the shelf  10  is attached to a wall  12 . The shelf  10  is then manipulated so that each wall entry end  3  is aligned with an opening  13  in the wall  12  so as to facilitate penetrate of the wall in generally a horizontal manner. The wall entry can be facilitated by first making the openings  13  in the wall corresponding to the spacing of the two hangers. Alternatively, the wall entry ends  3  could be sized such that they can penetrate the wall by just applying a force to the shelf  10  so that the wall entry ends  3  create the opening. The shelf  10  is generally parallel to the wall when the wall entry ends  3  are initially penetrating the wall, see  FIG. 3B . 
         [0032]    In the  FIG. 3A-3C  embodiment, the hanger is screw threaded to the shelf. However, the shelf could have a nut mounted therewith and the hanger attachment end  5  could have a machine screw thread for attachment. Alternatively, the attachment end could be glued to the shelf or a combination of gluing and threading or other mechanical type fastening. 
         [0033]    Once the wall entry ends  3  has sufficiently penetrated the wall, the shelf is rotated downwardly (arrow A) so that the wall entry ends  3  rotate in the opposite direction (arrow B), see  FIG. 3B . The rotation will stop once the surfaces  7  of the wall entry ends  3  contacts the rear surface  14  of the wall  12 , see  FIG. 3C . The hanger is appropriately curved, e.g., having a radius of curvature of 0.35, although others may be used, such that this contact positions the shelf at a generally 90° angle to the wall  12 . The weight of the shelf applies a force against the rear surface  14  of the wall so that the shelf remains stable. The impression given is that the shelf floats on the wall since no visible means of support are seen. 
         [0034]    Another advantage to this embodiment is that the little or no hardware is needed and the whole process takes little time. Making the necessary holes in the wall takes no time at all and once the holes are made, the shelf is mounted in seconds. 
         [0035]    The hangers themselves facilitate the location of the holes in the wall. Once the hangers are attached to the shelf, the shelf can be laid near the wall in an upright manner, see  FIG. 4  and the hanger ends  3  can be used to site the location  16  for making the holes. Thus, no measuring of the spacing of the hangers is needed. 
         [0036]    Another advantage is that the degree of attachment of the hanger to the shelf can be adjusted to accommodate different thicknesses of wall. For example, for ¼ inch drywall, the hangers would penetrate the shelf a greater distance. This is illustrated in  FIGS. 5A and 5B . In  FIG. 5A , the shelf is attached to a wall having a thickness x such that the attachment end  5  penetrates the shelf a distance W. When attaching the shelf to a thinner wall  12 ′ of thickness Y, the attachment end  5  penetrates the shelf a distance Z which is greater than W, and basically the difference between X and Y. For a thicker wall thickness, the hanger would not penetrate the shelf as deeply so that the distance of shelf penetration would be less than W. 
         [0037]    While a shelf is shown, any article can be supported provided that it is shaped to allow for the rotation described above. For example, a cabinet  60  that would be twelve inches high and twelve inches in depth could be mounted as long as the hangers were attached near the top of the cabinet to allow for the rotation, see  FIG. 11 . 
         [0038]    In most instances, a shelf does not see upward forces so the mounting shown in  FIGS. 1-5B  does not have to address this situation. However, in other instances, e.g., a towel rack, the cross bar of the towel rack will encounter upward forces as a result of removing a towel draped over the cross bar.  FIG. 6  shows another embodiment of the invention to deal with this situation. Here, a towel rack  30  has a cross bar  31  and legs  33 . The hanger  1  is attached to each leg  33  and the same mounting procedure as described above for the shelf is performed to mount the legs  33  to a wall  35 . The hardware also includes a brace  37 , which is designed to brace the towel rack from upward movement. In the  FIGS. 7 and 8 , the brace  37  is shown as a collar that surrounds the leg  33 . The upper portion  39  of the brace resists any upward forces applied to the towel rack so that the towel rack remains in place during towel removal or placement. The collar can be a two piece design, upper portion  39  and lower portion  41 , so that it is attached after the legs  33  are secured against the wall.  FIG. 8  shows one example wherein the collar is hinged at  43  and has a snap connection at  45  for attachment. Of course, other modes of securing the collar to the leg can be used, fasteners or any other known means to connect the two pieces together. 
         [0039]    In an alternative embodiment, braces  37  could be one piece design and mounted on the legs  33  prior to mounting of the towel rack. Here, the braces  37  would have to be mounted on the legs  33  near the cross bar  31  at location  47 , see  FIG. 6 , so that the braces  37  would not interfere in the rotation of the towel rack when mounting it to the wall. In this alternative embodiment, the collars could then be made in one piece design and secured to the legs  33  and against the wall after leg installation using set screws or the like. Another advantage of the collar is that it provides a decorative look to the towel rack, similar to existing towel rack configurations. The collar as a brace member can have virtually any shape to coordinate with the legs  33 . 
         [0040]    The brace can also be used in combination with the shelf  10  to provide resistance against upward movement of the shelf. In addition, the brace when used with the shelf provides the impression of a sturdier attachment to the wall, although in reality, the brace plays no role in this function.  FIG. 9  shows one shelf  10  and brace  49  in combination. The brace  49  would be attached after the shelf is secured to the wall so as not to interfere with the shelf rotation during the attaching step. The brace  49  can be attached in any way, preferably one that is removable so that the shelf can be removed. One example would be dowels  51  linking the brace  49  to the shelf  10 , much like the dowels used to fastener various furniture components together. Once the shelf is secured to the wall, dowels are inserted into either the brace holes or the shelf holes. The exposed dowel end is then placed in the remaining openings to secure the brace and shelf together. The dowels and holes should be sized to provide a reasonable tight fit but not so tight that the brace cannot be removed when desired. Alternatively, fasteners  53  could be&#39; employed that would extend through the brace  49 ′ to the shelf, see  FIG. 10A , or a brace  49 ″ with dovetail extension  55  as shown in  FIG. 10B , wherein the dovetail extension  55  would fit in a mating slot in the shelf after the shelf is secured. 
         [0041]    The hanger could have various cross sections and the cross sections could vary along the hanger length. Different radii of curvature could be employed as well. As shown in  FIG. 1C , a circular cross section could be employed on the end designed to be connected to the article and a rectangular cross section could be used on the wall entry end. Using a rectangular cross section for the wall entry end increases the size of the wall opening but also provides more surface area to contact the inner surface of the wall. Also, the end of the hanger for attachment to the article could have a flat cross shape with holes in it, and fasteners could extend through the holes to link the end of the hanger to the article. In this mode, the flat end would rest against a top or bottom surface of the article for attachment. The stronger the flat section by increasing its width and/or thickness, the more weight it can hold. 
         [0042]    While a pair of hangers are shown to hang the shelf or towel rack, an article could be hung with just one hanger. 
         [0043]    As such, an invention has been disclosed in terms of preferred embodiments thereof which fulfills each and every one of the objects of the present invention as set forth above and provides a new and improved method and hardware for hanging articles. 
         [0044]    Of course, various changes, modifications and alterations from the teachings of the present invention may be contemplated by those skilled in the art without departing from the intended spirit and scope thereof. It is intended that the present invention only be limited by the terms of the appended claims.