IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR SUSPENDING PICTURES AND FOR OTHER LIKE PURPOSES to be as follows:
Year: 1885

page_text: other like Purposes.
I EDMUND TONKS of the firm of William Tonks and Sons of Moseley Street
Birmingham in the County of Warwick Manufacturers do hereby declare the nature
of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR SUSPENDING PICTURES
AND FOR OTHER LIKE PURPOSES to be as follows:-
"
The object of my invention is principally to facilitate the hanging and the
adjustment of the height of pictures on the walls of public galleries and other
rooms and places but my invention may also be applied to other like purposes such
for example as the fixing of brackets.
I will describe my invention as applied to the hanging or suspending of pictures.
For this purpose I construct the suspending apparatus in the following manner.
I take strips of strong sheet iron and make in each of them a series of equi distant
cross slots or openings and I fix by screwing or otherwise the said slotted strips in
a vertical position parallel to and at a short distance from the wall of the picture
gallery or room on which the pictures are to be hung. The distance of the vortical
strips from the surface of the wall depends upon the length of the engaging part of
the adjustable hooks hereinafter described. Or the strips may be flush with the
wall and a channel cut in the wall for the engaging part of the hook to work in.
By means of the said vertical strips and adjustable hooks the pictures can be
readily suspended at the required height, The adjustable hooks on which the
pictures are suspended consist of an ordinary hook having a cranked head or upper
part. That is the top of the stem or body of the hook is cranked or bent back-
wards and then upwards so as to bring the extreme upper part of the stem into a
plane parallel with the said stem. The part between the extreme upper end and
stem of the hook which part I will call the neck is horizontal and of a length
somewhat greater than the thickness of the supporting strip. The extreme bent
back part and neck of the book I will call the engaging part of the hook.
In securing the adjustable hook to the vertical supporting strip the said hook is
held in a nearly horizontal position and the engaging part of the hook passed
through one of the slots in the supporting strip. By then lowering the hook into
vertical position the engaging or bent back part of the hook also takes a vertical

page_text: position and bears against the back of the strip the neck of the engaging part
being situated in the slot in the said strip. The hook is thus fixed in its place and
will remain secured to the strip so long as the hook is retained in its vertical or
normal position.
To remove the book for adjusting its position on the strip the said hook is
inclined upwards so as to withdraw the engaging part from the slot in the strip
when the hook may be removed by a horizontal motion. Instead of permanently
securing the vertical slotted strips to the wall the top of each strip may be
furnished with a ring or eye or short tube for sliding upon a picture rod. In
applying my invention to the fixing of brackets I replace the hook by a horizontal
or other support having an engaging part of the kind bereinbefore described.
When it is desirable to prevent any rocking or side movement in the hook or
bracket it may have a light truss or support underneath the bottom of which truss
or support engages in one of the lower slots. Or the slots in the vertical strips
and the engaging part of the hook or bracket may be made of such breadth as to
reduce to a minimum and practically to prevent any rocking or side movement.
Or the same effect may be produced by parallel rows of slots in the same strip and
making double engaging parts on the hooks or brackets the engaging part in this
case entering two slots instead of one as before described.
My invention may be applied to the suspending of various articles for example
clothes hats and the like at any desired height against a wall.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for Suspending Pictures and for
other like Purposes.
I EDMUND TONKS of the firm of William Tonks and Sons of Moseley Street
Birmingham in the County of Warwick Manufacturers do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention and in what manner the same is to be performed to
be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
The object of my invention is principally to facilitate the hanging and the
adjustment of the height of pictures on the walls of public galleries and other
rooms and places but my invention may also be applied to other like purposes, such
for example as the fixing of brackets.
I will describe my invention as applied to the hanging or suspending of pictures.
For this purpose I construct the suspending apparatus in the following manner.
I take strips of strong sheet steel, iron or other strong metal and make in each
of them a series of cross slots or openings and I fix by screwing or otherwise the
said slotted strips in a vertical position parallel to and at a short distance from
the wall of the picture gallery or room on which the pictures are to be hung. The
distance of the vertical strips from the surface of the wall depends upon the length
of the engaging part of the adjustable hooks hereinafter described. Or the strips
may be flush with the wall and a channel cut in the wall for the engaging part of
the hook to work in.
By means of the said vertical strips and adjustable hooks the pictures can be
readily and securely suspended at the required height. The adjustable hooks on
which the pictures are suspended consist of an ordinary hook having a cranked
head or upper part. That is, the top of the stem or body of the hook is cranked or
bent backwards and then upwards so as to bring the extreme upper part of the stem
into a plane parallel with the said stem. The part between the extreme upper end
and stem of the hook, which part I will call the neck, is horizontal and of a length
somewhat greater than the thickness of the supporting strip. The extreme bent
back part and neck of the hook I will call the engaging part of the hook.
In securing the adjustable hook to the vertical supporting strip the said hook is
held in a nearly horizontal position and the engaging part of the hook passed
through one of the slots in the supporting strip. By then lowering the hook into
a vertical position the engaging or bent back part of the hook also takes a vertical
position and bears against the back of the strip, the neck of the engaging part
being situated in the slot in the said strip. The hook is thus fixed in its place and
will remain secured to the strip so long as the hook is retained in its vertical or
normal position and until it has been raised to a position nearly horizontal.
To remove the hook for adjusting its position on the strip, the said hook is
inclined upwards so as to withdraw the engaging part from the slot in the strip,
when the hook may be removed by a horizontal motion. Instead of permanently
securing the vertical slotted strips to the wall the top of each strip may be furnished
with a ring or eye or short tube for sliding upon a picture rod. In applying
my invention to the fixing of brackets I replace the hook by a horizontal or other
....
3

page_text: support having an engaging part of the kind hereinbefore described. When it is
desirable to prevent any rocking or side movement in the hook or bracket it may
have a light truss or support underneath, the bottom of which truss or support
engages in one of the lower slots. Or the slots in the vertical strips and the
engaging part of the hook or bracket may be made of such breadth as to reduce to
a minimum and practically to prevent any rocking or side movement. Or the
same effect may be produced by parallel rows of slots in the same strip and making
double engaging parts on the hooks or brackets, the engaging part in this case
entering two slots instead of one as before described.
My invention may be applied to the suspending of various articles, for example,
clothes, hats and the like at any desired height against a wall.
Figure 1 of the accompanying Drawings represents in front elevation and
Figure 2 in side elevation, partly in section, apparatus constructed according to my
invention for suspending pictures and other articles in which apparatus the vertical
slotted strip is hooked by the hook a upon a picture or other rod b; Figures 3
and 4 represent the vertical slotted strip of the apparatus secured to the rod b by
a ring c at its top sliding upon the said rod b; and Figures 5 and 6 represent the
slotted strip of the apparatus provided with a slotted connection d at its top for
suspending it to a wall nail or other support. In the said Figures 1. 2. 3. 4. 5 and 6,
e is the vertical strip of strong sheet iron having in it a series of cross slots or
openings f, ƒ and g g are the adjustable hooks on which the pictures or other
articles are suspended. Each hook f has a cranked head or upper part h. It will
be seen by an examination of the Drawing that the cranked head h is made by
bending backwards and upwards the upper part of the stem of the hook into a
plane parallel with the said stem the neck part i between the cranked upper end h
and stem of the hook being horizontal. In order to secure the adjustable hook. g to
the vertical slotted supporting strip a, the said hook is held in a nearly horizontal
position and the cranked or engaging part h of the hook is passed through one
of the slots as indicated in dotted lines in Figure 2. By then lowering the
hook into a vertical position as represented in continuous lines, the cranked or bent
back part engages with the back of the strip and the neck ȧ occupies the slot f.
The hook is thus fixed in its place and will remain secured to the strip a so long
as the hook is retained in its vertical or normal position. By inclining the hook g
upwards into the position indicated in dotted lines, the parts h, i may be with-
drawn by a horizontal motion from the slot f in the strip and the hook removed
for adjusting its position on the strip or for other purpose. In this way the pictures
or other articles to be suspended can be readily adjusted at the required height on
the strips e, c.
To prevent any rocking or side motion in the hook it may be furnished with a
light truss or support below the body of the hook as hereinafter described with
respect to a bracket, the said truss or support taking into one of the lower slots
in the strip. Or parallel rows of slots may be made in the same strip for double
engaging parts on the books to take into and engage with.
When the strips e are required to be permanently fixed to the wall of the picture
gallery, room or other place, the said strips may be fixed by screwing or otherwise
securing them in a vertical position parallel to and at a short distance from the
said wall. Or the strips may be flush with the wall and a channel be made in the
wall for the cranked part of the hook to work in. Or a trough shaped or hollow
slotted strip of the kind herein after described in connection with brackets may be
used.
For the purpose of connecting the supporting strips, say, in a shop window and
for tightening the said strips the arrangement represented in front elevation in
Figure 7 side elevation in Figure 8 and plan in Figure 9 may be used. In this
case, the top of the strip e has rivetted to it the angle fixing plate the horizontal
part of which is screwed to the top of the shop window and the bottom of the
stripe has secured to it the angle connecting plate the said plate being fixed to
the strip by hooking the cranked part in the bottom slot in the strip. To the

page_text: base of the shop window, the plate m is screwed, the said plate m being provided
with a screw box or screw socket p. By means of a screw q passed through the
connecting plate and made to screw into the screw box or socket p, the required
tension may be put upon the stripe for tightening it.
Figure 10 represents in front elevation; Figure 11 in sido elevation, partly in
section, and Figure 12 in plan, apparatus constructed according to my invention
for supporting brackets upon the slotted strips; Figures 13, 14 and 15 represent
parts of the same detached; e is the trough strip and f, f are the slots therein, the
said strip being fixed permanently to the wall or surface or suspended in either of
the ways herein before described; r is the bracket consisting of a horizontal
support having at its inner end the cranked or engaging part of the kind herein-
before described with respect to a hook. To prevent lateral movement in the
bracket, the underside of it is furnished with a light truss or support s having &
booked end s. After the cranked end of the bracket r has been engaged with
one of the slots f in the strip e the truss or support 8 is sprung into a lower slot in
the strip and its hooked end 8 engaged with the back of the strip as represented
in Figure 4. When it is desirable to connect the bracket arm to the strip by
means of a socket (either single or double) the said socket may be secured to the
strip in the manner shown in Figures 10 and 11 and the socket separately in
Figures 14 and 15, where the socket is marked t and its engaging part t. Lateral
movement in the socket t on the strip is prevented by the lower hooked part t³
being engaged with a lower slot in the strip in the manner represented in the
Drawing.
Or the bracket socket may be made and connected to the slotted strip in the
manner represented in Figure 16 and separately in side and front elevation in
Figure 17 and plan of upper and lower sides in Figure 18. This socket is made
from a piece of sheet metal and is open at its sides and is fastened to the strip in
the manner described with respect to the bracket Figures 10. 11. 12 and 13. That
is to say, after the hooked end u² of the socket u has been engaged with the slot
in the strip, the nearly horizontal tooth at the bottom of the socket is sprung
into a lower slot in the said strip.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my invention
and the manner in which the same is to be performed I declare that I claim as
my invention ;—
Apparatus for suspending pictures and for other like purposes consisting
essentially of one or more vertical slotted strips of sheet steel or iron or other
strong metal or alloy of the kind described and illustrated and fixed to or suspended
upon the wall or surface in the ways described and illustrated and one or more
adjustable or detachable books brackets or other supports provided with one or
more engaging parts for taking into one or more of the cross slots in the said
slotted strip or strips for the purpose and substantially as hereinbefore described
and illustrated in the accompanying Drawings.
Dated this first day of Anril 1886