Patent Document

FIELD OF INVENTION 
     The present invention is directed to the field of garment hangers and is more particularly directed to a method for reusing hangers with size indicia mounted thereon. 
     BACKGROUND OF INVENTION 
     An article of clothing typically includes one or more labels located somewhere inside of the clothing article. The label usually includes size, fiber content and manufacturer details as well as information relating to country of origin and care instructions. In addition, a tag is attached to the article of clothing identifying the price of the garment as well as size. The tag often includes additional information relating to the store name, manufacturer and possibly a bar code which when scanned provides such information. 
     In some cases a particular retailer or garment manufacturer has attached a further tag to the garment which bears a design that is in part colored to permit sorting according to some attribute of the garment such as style, color or size. For instance, the portion of the design that is colored may be blue to indicate a women&#39;s size 6 or green to indicate a women&#39;s size 8 or blue to indicate a men&#39;s size 44 or green to indicate a men&#39;s size 48. When such information is included on the tag attached to a garment, the consumer or retailer need not review the label of each item of clothing but merely locate the appropriately colored tag. 
     However, tags are often attached to either the front, back or sleeve of the garment and thus, are not readily visible to either the retailer or the consumer. The retailer or consumer must rifle through the garments on the rack to locate the tags with the pertinent information. If the garment is not hung on a rack but folded in stacks (as is typical with sweaters and jeans) the tags are often tucked inside the garment for purposes of a neater display, thus, it is necessary to unfold the garment to find the appropriate information. 
     Furthermore, there is virtually no uniformity between manufacturers and/or retailers as to the designation of the desired attribute of the clothing. For instance, the color blue may mean size 6 for one manufacturer or retailer but size 12 for another. Thus, the consumer is not aided by the color designation when visiting different areas of the store. Further, blue may refer to large in a men&#39;s jacket size but medium for men&#39;s slacks. 
     For purposes of displaying garments suspended on hangers in an orderly and attractive manner to the retail customer, it is often desired to affix an indicating means on the hanger in a position visible to the retail customer while the hanger is suspended on a rack. The indicating means identifies some attribute of the garment suspended from the hanger, such as size, quality, color, manufacturing data, or pattern. 
     The provision of a readily visible size indicator on a garment hanger is now accepted by retailers as a desirable addition to a garment hanger. To accommodate the various types of hangers available in the industry numerous indicating means have been developed in a variety of shapes, sizes and materials. Similarly, hangers have been developed to accommodate a variety of different indicating means. 
     In Australian Pat. No. 638436 and corresponding U.S. Pat. No. 5,388,354, assigned to the assignee of the present invention, a low-profile molded plastic indicator for a garment hanger which requires limited modification to the hook of the hanger to enable the indicator to be securely attached to the top of the hook where it is most visible is described. The indicator is also designed to enable sorting into a predetermined orientation to enable automated handling and fitting of the indicators to hangers as described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,272,806 and 5,285,566 which are assigned to the assignee of the present invention. 
     Such hangers and indicia are typically used only a single time and then shipped to either a landfill as waste or a recycling center where the plastic hangers are granulated into pellets which are then resold. 
     However, landfills are taking up more and more space and recycling is often an expensive venture which renders such an option cost inefficient despite the need to conserve our environment&#39;s resources. Furthermore, many companies do not want to purchase recycled-content plastic products for either safety (i.e., food containers) or aesthetic purposes. 
     SUMMARY OF INVENTION 
     Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a method for reusing hangers having size indicia removably mounted thereon wherein plastic hangers used to display garments in a retail store are re-used several times before being shipped as waste or recycled. 
     More particularly, the method of the present invention comprises: 
     (a) shipping a first plurality of hangers to a plurality of clothing manufacturers at scattered geographic locals; 
     (b) shipping a plurality of removable size indicia to the plurality of clothing manufacturers at the scattered geographic locals, the removable size indicia adapted to be removably secured to the first plurality of hangers; 
     (c) assembling one hanger from said plurality of hangers with a garment and one of the removable size indicia, wherein the size indicia represents the size of the garment and the size indicia is preferably attached to the hanger automatically; 
     (d) batching a plurality of the hangers with garments suspended therefrom and size indicia mounted thereon and then shipping the batch to a retail outlet for display and sale of the garments; 
     (e) removing a definable percentage of the hangers with the size indicia mounted thereon from the garments as said garments are sold, and returning the defined percentage of hangers with size indicia to a reuse center; 
     (f) removing the size indicia from the hangers at the reuse center and inspecting the hangers to obtain a plurality of selected hangers for reuse, wherein the removal of the size indicia from the hanger is preferably performed by automated removal; and 
     (g) augmenting the selected hangers with newly molded hangers to provide the first plurality of hangers and repeating step (a) to form a loop for reused hangers. 
     The method of the present invention particularly addresses environmental concerns to reduce plastic waste by reducing the overall number of plastic garment hangers being manufactured. 
     The first plurality of hangers is molded and shipped to numerous clothing manufacturers in a variety of geographic locals throughout the world. In a preferred embodiment batches of the removable size indicia, which correspond to the hangers in the first plurality of hangers, are molded from plastic and then shipped to the various clothing manufacturers. The batches are typically molded by size and color to form batches of color coded size indicia in a plurality of different colors. In a preferred embodiment the batches of color coded size indicia are bundled into stacks and automatically attached to the hangers. To ensure color uniformity the color coded size indicia can be molded at a single location. Each size indicia is mounted on a hanger from which a garment is also suspended such that the size of the garment corresponds to the size indicia. 
     Groups of hangers with size indicia mounted thereon and garments suspended therefrom are organized according to a retail store&#39;s order and then the batch of hangers with size indicia and garments are shipped to a retail store or retail distribution center for display and sale of the garments. Such garments are floor ready meaning that the garment can literally go from the packing box to the rack for display. Much of the back room sorting, sizing and pricing is eliminated. Because the garments arrive at the store already hung on hangers, the number of hangers the store is required to store is also vastly reduced. It will be noted that when the hangers with garments and size indicia may be shipped to a retail distribution center, the center then forwards the appropriate number of such items to the appropriate retail store. 
     In the present method as the garments are sold in the retail store the hangers with size indicia are removed from the garments and separately packaged for return shipment to a reuse center. The number of hangers set aside for reuse is a definable percentage taking into account that some customers will request that they be permitted to keep a hanger at the point of sale and that hangers may be inadvertently damaged, thrown out or kept by a store. In a preferred embodiment the definable percentage of hangers removed for reuse is 65% to 90%. It has been found that about 10% to 35% of the hangers identified as the first plurality of hangers will be unrecoverable. 
     At the reuse center the size indicia are automatically removed from the hangers and the hangers are inspected for damage or other contamination. The non-damaged and non-contaminated hangers are selected for reuse. It is contemplated that about 10-30% of the returned hangers will be unrecoverable which means that in a preferred embodiment the number of hangers selected for reuse constitutes about 50% to 80% of the first plurality of hangers originally molded and sent to the garment manufacturers. In a preferred embodiment the hangers not selected for reuse are ground into pellets and either recycled or sold as scrap plastic. In a preferred embodiment the recycled plastic is ground, fed into a hopper and melted down in a barrel extruder to form a molten plastic which is then injected into a mold machine to form recycled plastic hangers for retail consumer usage. The consumer grade hangers are then returned to the retail store for sale. 
     The hangers which are selected for reuse are returned to garment manufacturers and batched with newly molded hangers to repeat the present process. Statistical averages indicate that a hanger will complete 2 to 6 loops of reuse before being considered unrecoverable. Typically the hangers are cleaned before being returned to the garment manufacturers for reuse. 
     Since fewer than 100% of the hangers are reused it is necessary to augment the supply of hangers being reused with newly molded hangers in order to maintain a constant adequate supply. In the preferred embodiment the supply of selected hangers is augmented with about 20 to 50% of the number of the first plurality of hangers. However, the number of overall hangers which are molded is less than if there was no reuse. 
     In yet another embodiment the present invention contemplates the reuse of the color coded indicia. Accordingly, the present method further includes the steps of sorting the removed size indicia from the hangers by color. If different size designations are utilized for the same color coded size indicia then a secondary sort by size must also be completed. The sorted size indicia would then be bundled and shipped to the garment manufacturers for mounting on hangers. In a preferred embodiment the method further includes the step of washing the color coded size indicia. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES 
     The foregoing and other objects of the invention may now be more readily ascertained from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments thereof, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which: 
     FIG. 1 illustrates a hanger hook with a color coded size cap mounted thereon that is useful in the practice of the present invention; 
     FIG. 2 is a cross section taken along section lines  2 - 2 ′ of FIG. 1 which illustrates the interior construction of the hanger and hook combination illustrated in FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 3 is an illustration of a common color code assigned to various sub-sets of the plurality of graded size, as determined by large scale consumer demographics; 
     FIG. 4 is an illustration of one set of common size designations illustrating a sub-set of the plurality of graded sizes of the present invention; 
     FIG. 5 is an illustration of one family of hanger designs that may be used throughout a retail clothing store to uniformly display the articles of clothing for sale, and to display the color codes of the present invention; 
     FIGS.  6 ( a ),  6 ( b ) and  6 ( c ) are three drawings, which when combined as indicated thereon, illustrate one representative example of a color code scheme of the present invention; 
     FIG. 7 is an isometric view of a mechanism useful in the automatic assembly of the color coded index caps and hangers of the present invention; 
     FIG. 8 is an plan view of the mechanism shown in FIG. 7 illustrating the assembly of a color coded index cap to a hanger as taught by the present invention; 
     FIG. 9 is an isometric view of a mechanism useful in the dis-assembly of the color coded index caps from the hangers to enable reuse of the hangers; 
     FIGS.  10 ( a ),  10 ( b ) and  10 ( c ) illustrate in sequence the operation of the mechanism illustrated in FIG. 9 as the hanger and color coded index cap are disassembled; and 
     FIG. 11 illustrates a diagram for implementing the method for re-using hangers having size indicia. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Referring now in detail to the drawings, and to the embodiments depicted in FIGS. 1 and 2, there is illustrated a hanger hook  2  with a color coded size cap  18  mounted thereon that is useful in the practice of the present invention. The hook  2  of a molded plastic garment hanger is shown in simplified form and is adapted to engage a rod or other supporting means. In practice the hook typically includes the strengthening ribs  12   a ,  12   b  around the perimeter of the hook. It will be noted that in FIGS. 1 and 2, the body and clips of the hanger are not depicted. The body and clip structure of the hanger can take on many different types of configurations as long as the hanger supports the garments suspended thereon. In FIG. 5, several exemplary hanger styles which will accommodate a variety of types of clothing are depicted. Each of the hangers shown in FIG. 5 includes a means for attaching a color coded size cap  18 . 
     The color coded size cap  18  which is mounted on the hanger is more clearly illustrated in FIG.  2 . As shown therein the size cap includes side walls  20 ,  22  formed with at least one retention aperture  24 ,  26 , as described in Australian Pat. No. 638436 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,388,354, the contents of which are incorporated into this specification by cross-reference. The apertures  24 ,  26  define through-openings which facilitate stacking of the indicator  18  with other indicators prior to fitting to a hanger. 
     The indicator is retained on the hook by an indicator attachment mechanism. As illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 the hook  2  is formed with a flange  14  defining a top region  16 , which in a preferred embodiment is flattened and slightly larger in peripheral dimensions than the lowermost portion of an indicator  18 . An upstanding web  4  extends centrally from the top region  16  of the hook  2 . The web  4  can be shaped similarly to the shape of the cavity of the indicator  18  so as to comfortably fit within that cavity. As one alternative, the web  4  can be shaped to follow the normal contour of the hanger hook. 
     The web  4  is formed with integrally molded indicator attachment means  28 . In the present embodiment the indicator attachment means includes central opening  6  from the upper portion of which a resilient detent leg  8  extends downwardly terminating in a laterally projecting portion  30  configured to engage one of the apertures  24  or  26  in the side wall of the indicator  18 , as shown in FIG.  2 . 
     Since the detent leg  8  is narrow and is resiliently connected to web  4 , it is easily deflected laterally by means of a probe or pin inserted into the aperture  24  or  26  which engages laterally projecting portion  30  to displace laterally projecting portion  30  toward the plane of the web to clear the aperture  24  or  26  and allow the indicator to be removed from the web  4 . This operation can be achieved simply and quickly with little or no damage to the indicator  18  or the attachment means  28 . Nevertheless, while the laterally projecting portion  30  remains in the position shown in FIG. 2 of the drawings, the indicator  18  will remain securely fastened to the web  4  and will withstand all usual handling operations to which the hanger is subjected in day-to-day use. 
     To improve the flexibility of the detent leg  8 , it can be reduced in thickness as shown at  200  in FIG. 2 of the drawings. 
     Other means for attaching indicators to hangers can be utilized, such as the means described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,388,354, wherein the indicator may also be retained on the hook by means of at least one abutment projecting from the hook which engages an aperture in the side wall of the indicator. However, when the indicator is retained by an abutment, the indicator is not easily removed from the hanger and either the hanger or the indicator may be damaged during the process. 
     In the preferred embodiment of the present invention the size cap shown is of a rectangular configuration, see for example, FIGS. 1 and 3, and presented at the top of the hook. However, other shapes and configurations of size caps can be used in accordance with the present invention. 
     The indicator  18  of the preferred embodiment has been particularly well-received by retailers and consumers in the method and system for color coding sizes of clothing on display which is also useful in the practice of the present invention. 
     In the present method and system, individual articles of clothing are classified according to line, such as men&#39;s apparel, women&#39;s apparel, infant and toddler apparel, youth apparel, girl&#39;s apparel, boy&#39;s apparel, intimate apparel, men&#39;s apparel sized by waist, women&#39;s apparel sized by waist, petite apparel and plus apparel. Each line of clothing is then further classified according to type of clothing. For instance, further classification in the women&#39;s line includes dresses, shirts, blouses, skirts, slacks, suits, sweaters, coats, jackets, panties, bras, and bathing suits. 
     Each of these lines of clothing is then segregated into a plurality of graded sizes with a plurality of common size designations that appear in all of the clothing lines. Common size designations may include XXS (extra, extra-small), XS(extra-small), P/S (petite/small), S(small), S/M (small/medium), M(medium), M/L(medium/large), L(large), L/XL (large/extra-large), XL(extra-large), XXL(extra-extra-large) and XXXL (extra-extra-extra large). Of these designations S, M, L and XL are almost universally available. Each of these common size designations designates clothes intended to fit consumers of a particular physiology. 
     In some situations, typically, when the clothing is more tailored, a more specific size designation is required and the size designations are referenced by numerals such as 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 16, 18 and 20; 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11 and 13; or 3/4, 5/6, 7/8, 9/10, 11/12, 13/14 and 15/16, which would appear in numerous clothing lines. 
     The particular graded sizes in different clothing lines that would be selected by a consumer selecting clothing appropriate for a particular physiology is then identified and a color code assigned to each graded size designation to form a matched set of graded sizes common to a specific consumer profile. The clothing is displayed on a hanger with a color coded size cap mounted thereon such that the color of the size cap conforms to the assigned color code. 
     For instance, in the color coding system illustrated in FIG. 3, the color blue has been assigned 7 different size designations: L, M/L, 24 M, 9, 9/10, 24 W and 38. As indicated by the sizes matched in this set, the blue color indicates a large size clothing. In women&#39;s apparel, the sizing used in different lines of clothing would typically be L or M/L and 9 or 9/10 to designate a particular physiology profile. A women of this physiology would know by using the color coding method and system of the present invention that she could look for garments hung on a hanger with a blue size cap to find clothes that matched her physiology. 
     In infant&#39;s apparel the sizing would typically be either large or 24 months both of which identify garments that would fit an infant of a particular physiology. Thus, the consumer could then look for garments hung on hangers with a blue size cap to find appropriate garments. 
     It will be noted that the same color designating the larger sized clothing in the women&#39;s apparel line is used to designate the larger sized clothing in the infant apparel line. This system can be followed in garments sized by waist, where for instance the blue color indicates a 38 waist and also in the plus-sized apparel to designate a 24W, where the plus-sized line of clothing runs from size 16W to 26W. This system permits the purchaser to move from department to department of a retail store and find articles of clothing appropriate to fit a particular physiology based on the color coding of the sizes. Furthermore, this same consumer can make purchases for others knowing only the bare basics of the recipient&#39;s physiology. 
     FIG. 4 illustrates one set of common size designations showing a subset of the plurality of graded sizes of the present invention wherein: 
     lemon designates XXL 
     purple designates XL or L/XL 
     blue designates L or M/L 
     green designates M 
     yellow designates S 
     pink designates XXS. 
     A different color designates each graded size in this universal system of sizing. It will be noted that there are two size designations for purple and blue. This is possible because a single manufacturer of clothing would not typically use both forms of sizing for the same type of garment. However, both forms of sizing may be found in a single classification of clothing. By designating all clothing that can fit a specifically sized person with a single color the consumer then easily knows to look for that color size cap when selecting clothing on display. 
     FIG. 5 illustrates one family of hanger designs that may be used throughout a retail clothing store to uniformly display the articles of clothing for sale and to display the color codes of the present invention. Hangers  300 ,  302  and  304  are typically used to hang tops such as shirts, blouses, dresses, coats, jackets, robes, nightgowns, rompers, overalls, swimwear and sweaters. Hanger  300  which is 12 inches long can be used to hang infant and toddler tops, hanger  302  which is 14 inches long can be used to hang kids tops and hanger  304  which is 17 inches long can be used to hang adult tops. Hangers  306 ,  308  and  310  are typically used to hang bottoms such as slacks, denims and skirts. Hanger  306  which is 8 inches long can be used to hang infant and toddler bottoms, hanger  308  which is 10 inches long can be used to hang children&#39;s bottoms and hanger  310  which is 12 inches long can be used to hang adult bottoms. Hanger  312  can be used to hang bras, panties, slips and bathing suits. A hanger body length of about 10 inches is preferred to accommodate a variety of different sizes. Hanger  314  is a frame hanger which can be used to hang infant and toddler separates and coordinates. The varying lengths of hangers  300 - 310  accommodate virtually all of the different lines of clothing ranging from infants to plus sizes. 
     Each of these hangers includes an indicator attachment mechanism as described previously herein to display the color coded size caps described herein at the top of the hook. Typically a retail store utilizes many different hanger designs depending upon the type of garment and the manufacturer. Limiting the number of hangers used throughout the store to about eight different designs is an extremely cost-effective maneuver which will also standardize the display and result in a neater appearance. However, it will be noted that the eight designs of FIG. 5 constitute a preferred embodiment of the present invention. Any hanger with an indicator attachment mechanism suitable for receiving a color coded size cap can be used in the method and system of the present invention. 
     FIGS.  6 ( a ),  6 ( b ) and  6 ( c ) illustrate one representative example of a color code scheme of the present invention which can accommodate the sizing needs of all lines of clothing and departments in a large retail store. 
     At the far left of FIG.  6 ( a ) designated as Rows A-G are a plurality of size classifications which would be appropriate for a plurality of clothing lines are designated as universal, tall/multi, infant or toddlers, metric, multi-sizes, plus-size and waist sizes. It will be noted that more than one size classification may be found in a single line of clothing. For instance, in women&#39;s apparel, clothing may be sized in universal sizes (Row A), metric sizes (Row D) (typically, odd numbers, even numbers or multi-sizes), plus sizes (Row F) or by waist (Row G). 
     To the right of each class designation in each row is a series of graded size designations appropriate for each class. The size designations are based on large scale consumer physiological demographics, so that in identifying the graded size for an item of clothing sized by a waist size, the size identified is common to the graded size of an item of clothing sized by chest size or universal size for the same consumer physiological profile. 
     The particular graded sizes in different clothing lines that would be selected by a consumer for a specified physiological profile are set forth in columns each of which are assigned a color. Each color designates a specific size which will fit a consumer of a particular physiological profile. The color coded size cap mounted on the hanger (such as any hanger depicted in FIG. 5) from which the garment is suspended can be used to determine which clothing on display is to be selected to form a matched set of graded sizes common to a specific consumer physiology. 
     About 16 different colors are needed to differentiate between all of the different sizes. One family of colors is set forth in FIG. 6 in Columns  1 - 20 , which includes: lemon (Pantone 101 U), pink (Pantone 189 U), aqua (Pantone 326 U), red (Pantone 192 U), tan (Pantone 145 U), yellow (Pantone 121 U), light blue (Pantone 306 U), green (Pantone 340 U), sky blue (Pantone 2975 U), light purple (Pantone 2715 U), olive (Pantone 398 U), blue (Pantone 285 U), orange (Pantone 165 U), dark purple (Pantone 2593 U), light green (Pantone 375 U) and burgundy (Pantone 246 U). Colors can be reused in different lines of clothing where the sizes do not overlap but still typically designate either a larger, smaller or medium size. 
     For instance in the present embodiment it will be noted that the colors yellow, aqua, tan and sky blue have been used more than once in designating a physiological profile. Using the color aqua (Columns  3  and  18 ) as an example, the sizes 2 and waist 29 designate one physiological profile, while XXXL, 15 and 15/16 designate a completely separate physiological consumer profile. There would be no overlap in the lines of clothing sought by individuals between these two size groups. The size 4T is also designated by the color aqua. Again this size does not overlap with either of the other two size groups which renders it permissible to reuse the color in the toddler line. Also it is noted that the size 4T is one of the largest toddler sizes bringing the use of the color in line with its larger size designation. When a color is used to designate a multitude of sizes in non overlapping lines of clothing it will not be a color used to designate one of the more common sizes such as S, M or L. 
     However, typically a color will only be used once to designate a single physiological profile. More than 70% of all size caps will fall into one of five colors that designates the physiological profile for the following universal sizes: XS, S, M, L and XL and the corresponding size classes designated by row. To enhance the visibility of these size caps for these most common sizes the size caps are assigned the brightest and most basic colors, respectively-red, yellow, green, blue and purple. 
     Blue for instance designates a large size in the present embodiment as discussed previously with respect to FIG.  3 . Yellow designates the size small. Corresponding to this physiological profile for a women&#39;s line of clothing are the sizes S, 5, 5/6, and waist 32. Clothes marked with these sizes would all fit a women of a particular physiological profile. The sizes S and 12M also would fit an infant of a particular physiological profile and the size 20W is considered to be a small plus-sized garment. Accordingly, attaching a yellow size cap to the hangers from which each of these garments are suspended would enable a consumer to match up all the different clothes from numerous clothing lines and by numerous manufacturers which fit a particular physiology identified as being small. Thus, the consumer could move from department to department reviewing numerous lines of clothing from slacks, to suits, to coats, to dresses, to intimate apparel and find the size appropriate for that consumer&#39;s particular physiological profile. The consumer would even recognize the color as designating a particular size profile in other lines of clothing, such as an infant or men&#39;s apparel. 
     By placing a color coded size cap at the top of each hanger the consumer is greatly aided in locating all garments designed to fit a particular physiological profile in numerous different departments from different clothing lines no matter how the garment is sized, universally or metrically. This also aids the salesperson who is assisting the consumer in looking for a particular garment either on the floor of the store as well as in the back rooms of the store where any additional garments are stored, replenishing a rack of clothing, organizing a rack of clothing according to size or re-organizing a rack of clothing by size at the end of the day. 
     It is also contemplated that in the preferred embodiment of the system of the present invention the color coded size caps and the garments are assembled at the point of manufacture and arrive at the store already on the hanger. This means that the actual matching of the color coded size cap and an article of clothing takes places before shipment of the garment from the manufacturer. The garment arrives at the retail store, floor ready. The prehung color coded sized garments need only be removed from a box and hung on the rack. Most of the typical back room work in a retail store is eliminated, thus making the system of the present invention extremely cost-efficient. In a preferred embodiment, the attachment of the color coded size cap to the hanger is performed automatically at the time the garment is hung. Although the attachment could also be by manual means. 
     One such means for automatically attaching a color coded size cap to hanger is illustrated in FIGS. 7 and 8 and is more specifically described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,272,806; 5,285,566 and 5,507,087, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. It will be noted that each of these patents is assigned to the assignee of the present invention. In the illustrated embodiment of a system for attaching an indicator to a hanger, the attaching means includes a pair of magazine towers  101  and  102  dimensioned to contain a vertical stack of hangers therebetween and a third magazine  108  which receives a bundle of stacked indexing caps. The hangers rest on platen member  104  and are selectively engaged by a reciprocating plate  105  which includes a cutout  105   a  conforming to the exterior dimensions of the index coded cap  18 . 
     Immediately adjacent cut-out  105   a  are alignment cams  109 . The ends  111   a ,  111   b  of reciprocating plate  105  provide a spring loaded tip for engagement of the hanger  11 . In addition, the magazines  101  and  102  are independently adjustable by means of bracket  110  and support  112  to configure the system to a wide variety of hanger shapes including those depicted in FIG.  5 . Each of the magazines  101 ,  102  and  108  have cut-outs  101   a ,  102   a  which allow the hangers and index caps to be withdrawn from the magazines as plate means  105  reciprocates forwardly as illustrated in FIG.  7 . Stand-off legs  113 - 115  are used to elevate the system above the employee work bench, to assist the operator in draping the article of clothing about the hanger before the hanger is withdrawn from the system. Alternately, the individual legs can be altered in length to provide a slanted configuration which will facilitate hanging clothes therefrom. 
     As illustrated in FIG. 8, the system is loaded with a bundle of stacked caps indicated at  18  which are loaded into magazine  108 . Magazine  108  is suspended above the reciprocating plate  105  and platen  104  by brackets  116 ,  117 . Prior to engagement with the hanger  11  the spring loaded tips  111   a ,  111   b  of reciprocating plate  105  are fully distended. As plate  105  moves forward, or downwardly as illustrated in FIG. 8, it first engages an index cap from the stack of caps  18  within recess  105   a . The alignment surface  109  centers the hook  2  within the reciprocating plate  105  so that the indicator attachment mechanism on the hook is properly aligned with the index cap  18  during attachment. Plate  105  is dimensioned such that the index cap is seated on hook  2  by the impact of plate  105  as the floating spring loaded tips  111   a ,  111   b  engage the center portion of hanger  11 . The hanger is then driven forwardly out of the magazines  101 ,  102  to the position illustrated by the dotted lines in FIG.  8 . 
     The hanger engages eccentric stops  106   a ,  106   b  and displaces the end portion of platen  104  outwardly as illustrated in FIG.  8 . The spring loaded tips  111   a  and  111   b  compensate for irregularities in hanger molding and reduce the impact of the reciprocating plate  105  on the central portion of the hanger. This substantially eliminates the broken and shattered hangers normally encountered in this type of device. As the pneumatic cylinder  103  drives platen  104 , the spring loaded tips  111   a ,  111   b  are compressed, and the spring loaded platen  107  is between platen  104 , and platen  107 . As illustrated in FIG. 8, the hanger is now presented to the operator with the clips  32   a - 32   b  suspended above the work space and free from any immediately adjacent encumbrances, so that the operator may quickly and easily attach a garment thereto. As the article of clothing is attached to the hanger, it is lifted free of the spring loaded tips  111   a ,  111   b  of platen  105 , which allows platen  107  to close thereby actuating the control mechanism for the system to return reciprocating plate  105  back to its original starting position. If set on automatic, as soon as the plate  105  has reciprocated to its fully retracted position, it is reciprocated forward to automatically dispense another index coded cap and hanger. 
     In still another embodiment the system for color coding sizes of clothing displayed in retail clothing stores includes automatic means for removing the color coded index caps to the hangers. 
     FIGS.  9  and  10 ( a ), ( b ) and ( c ) illustrate one such means for removal wherein the indicator attachment mechanism is of the embodiment depicted in FIGS. 1 and 2 herein. The laterally extending portion  30  of the indicator attachment mechanism is easily deflected by means of a pin  220  inserted in the aperture  24  of indicator  18  which engages the laterally extending portion to displace it towards the plane of web  4  to clear the aperture  24  and allow the indicator  18  to be removed from the hanger  1 . Using this system, which is described more particularly in International Application No. PCT/US96/01286 the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference thereto, the color coded indexing caps can be automatically removed from their respective hangers  1 . 
     In this embodiment the hanger  1  is fed to the apparatus for removing the color coded index cap by a feeding rail  205 . The feeding rail is inclined so that the hangers  1  move downwardly toward the apparatus by gravity. To initiate the process the hangers  1  can be placed onto the feeding rail  205  manually or automatically. Other means to feed hangers  1  to the apparatus can comprise a screw conveyor, a belt conveyor, or any other appropriate means to carry the hangers toward the apparatus. 
     The apparatus of the present embodiment includes a front plate  206 , a back plate  107  and an actuating means  208 . Front plate  206  and back plate  207  are arranged vertically and are facing each other. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 9, the two plates  206  and  207  are almost quadratic, however, any other appropriate shape, for example rectangular, can be used. 
     The actuating means  208  includes a pneumatically driven escapement valve with two rods. Each of the rods is connected to the plate  206  or  207  via respective connecting means  209  and  210 . In use, the actuating means  208  moves the front plate  206  and the back plate  207  parallel to each other in a vertical plane. This movement is periodically repeated to permit the removal of cap from one hanger after another. 
     Back plate  207  has a recess  219  positioned on an outer portion of the surface facing the front plate  206 . Recess  219  is dimensioned to correspond to the dimensions of indicator  18 , so that when a hanger  1  is pressed against the back plate  207 , the indicator  18  is received in the recess  219 . A pin  220  is provided on the back wall of the recess  219  in a position corresponding to the aperture  24  of the indicator  18 . The dimensions, such as the size and the shape, of the pin  220  are selected according to the dimensions, particularly, the shape and the depth, of the aperture  24 , so that the pin  220  enters the aperture  24  and is able to displace the laterally projecting portion  30  of the web  4  of the hanger  1  to clear the aperture  24 , and permit the indicator  18  to be removed from the hanger  1 . In the preferred embodiment of FIG. 9, the pin  220  has a rectangular cross-section, but another appropriate shape can be used. 
     Front plate  206  includes a through-opening or window  218 . Window  218  is preferably dimensioned to correspond to the configuration of recess  219  of back plate  207 . However, the window  218  can have any appropriate shape, as long as the indicator can pass through it. When back plate  207  is in its upper position and the front plate  206  is in its lower position, the recess  219  and the window  218  match, so that the indicator  18  can be removed from the recess  219  through the window  218 . 
     In the described embodiment the preferred method for removal of the indicator  18  from recess  219  is by means of an air blast through aperture  221  in the back wall of recess  219 . Aperture  221  is connected to an air control means by means of a tube  227 , shown in FIG.  10 ( c ). The air blast through the opening  221  is controlled so that when the back plate  207  reaches its upper position, and the front plate  206  is in its lower position, the air blast is generated or enabled, which pushes the indicator  18  through the window  218  of front plate  206 . The released indicator passes through the window  218  and is collected by a discharge tube or chute  224 , positioned in front of the window  218  and leads the released indicator to a container  225  (shown in FIGS.  10 ( a ) and  10 ( c )). 
     The feeding rail  205  extends under the two plates  206  and  207 . The distance between the plates  206  and  207  and the feeding rail  205  when the plates are in their lower positions is preferably such that pin  220  of back plate  207  will be aligned with aperture  24  of indicator  18 . The height of the assembly is adjusted to provide an automatic operation for different styles of hangers and hooks. 
     As illustrated in FIG. 9 the back plate  207  is in its lower position and the front plate  206  is in its upper position. When hanger  1  moves down the feeding rail  205  toward the decapping apparatus the movement of the hanger  1  is stopped by the back plate  207 . 
     FIGS.  10 ( a ),  10 ( b ) and  10 ( c ) illustrate the sequence of the operation for automatically removing color coded index caps from hangers in accordance with the present invention. 
     More particularly, FIG.  10 ( a ) illustrates the start of the cycle for removing color coded index caps  18  from a plurality of hangers. As shown, it will be noted that the back plate  207  is lowered to its lowermost position and a plurality of hangers are waiting in front of the decapping apparatus on the feeding rail  205  in line for removal of the indicator caps  18  one after the other. 
     The front plate  206  is raised but only needs to be raised upwardly until it no longer covers the recess  219 . In other words, the amplitude of the movement of the plates  206  and  207  has to be at least the height of the recess  219 , so that the indicator  18  can be received in the recess  219 . 
     Gravity pushes the foremost hanger with indicator into the recess  219  of back plate  207 . After the indicator  18  is received in the recess  219  of the back plate  207 , the front plate  206  is moved downwardly to seat the indicator  18  firmly or at least to hold the indicator firmly in the recess  219  of the back plate  207 . In this position the pin  220  of the back plate  207  displaces the laterally extending portion  30  of the hanger  1 , to permit the release of the indicator  18  from the hanger  1 . The pin  220  is long enough to fully displace the laterally extending position  30  from the recess  24  of indicator  18 , but is not long enough to engage the aperture  6  of hook  2 . 
     FIG.  10 ( b ) illustrates the sequence of removing the indicator  18  from a hanger  1  mid-cycle when both the front and back plates  206  and  207  are in their lower positions. After the pin  220  releases the indicator attachment mechanism the front plate  206  is lowered to separate the released indicator and hanger  1  from the rest of the hangers and also to engage the foremost hanger  1 . To assist in the separation of the foremost hanger  1  with the released indicator from the other hangers the lower edge  246  of the front plate  206  can be beveled. The beveled lower edge  246  of the front plate  206  holds the hanger  1  down by abutting against the edge of the top region  16  of the hook of the hanger  1 . As shown in FIGS.  10 ( a )- 10 ( c ) lower edge  246  of front plate  206  is beveled towards the back plate  207 . As one alternative, lower edge  246  can have a step-shape. 
     FIG.  10 ( c ) illustrates the end of the cycle wherein the pin  220  has displaced the laterally extending portion  30  from the indicator  18 , and the indicator may be removed from hanger  1  when the back plate  207  is moved upwardly to its upper position, while the front plate  206  stays in its lower position. Since pin  220  of the back plate  207  extends into the aperture  24  of the indicator  18 , the back plate  207  carries the indicator  18  upwardly. The front plate  106  engages hanger  1  and prevents the hanger  1  from also being carried upwardly. 
     Consequently, the pin  220  has two functions: displacing the laterally extending portion  30  of the hanger  1  to release the indicator  18  from the hanger  1  and carrying the indicator  18  upwardly to separate the indicator  18  from the hanger  1 . 
     As previously described the indicator  18  is preferably removed from recess  219  by means of air blast through aperture  221  in back plate  207 . The air blast pushes the indicator  18  through the window  218  of the front plate  206 . The released indicator  18  passes through the window  218  of the front plate  206  and is collected by a discharge tube  224 , which is positioned in front of the window  218  and leads the released indicator to a container  225 . 
     Upon removal of the indicator  18  from hanger  1  and after back plate  207  is moved upwardly, hanger  1  continues to slide down the feeding rail  205 . As illustrated in FIG.  10 ( c ), hanger  1  with web  4  is moving down the feeding rail  205  after being decapped. The decapped hanger is either collected manually or automatically therefrom, for example by means of a screw conveyor, which can collect decapped hangers from a plurality of feeding rails  205  coming from respective decapping apparatuses. 
     As illustrated in FIGS.  9  and  10 ( a ), the automatic means for removing indicators from hangers is driven pneumatically, and further comprises position control means  211 , air control means  214 , a first timer  216 , a second timer  217 , and an air valve  237 . The air valve  237  generates and/or controls the pressurized air, by which the decapping apparatus according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention is controlled and driven. 
     The air valve  237 , the timers  216  and  217 , the actuating means  208 , the air control means  240  and the position control means  211  respectively are connected by air tubes for pneumatic control. Also, the entire apparatus is held and fixed to a holding means (not shown). 
     As shown in FIG.  10 ( a ), the position control means  211  comprises a first detector  212  for the position of the front plate  206  and a second detector  213  for the position of the back plate  207 . The first detector  212  and the second detector  213  work on a pneumatical basis and have a similar structure. First and second detectors  212  and  213  each include generally a cylindrical tube illustrated by  244  and  245 , respectively, and pistons  222  and  223 , respectively, which are movable within each of said cylindrical tubes  244  and  246 . The outer ends of pistons  222  and  223  are provided with contact plates, which are contacted by the upper sides of the front plate  206  and the back plate  207 , respectively. 
     In the upper position, the front plate  206  and the back plate  207  press inwardly pistons  222  and  223 , respectively, and cause a pneumatic signal in the position control means  211 , thereby permitting a steady control of the position and the movement of the plates  206  and  207 . FIG.  10 ( a ) shows a cross section of the control means  211  and the plates  206  and  207 , whereby the position of the plates  206  and  207  is the same as in FIG.  9 . Also, the discharge tube  224  and a collecting container  225  for the released indicators  18  are illustrated. 
     FIG.  10 ( c ) illustrates a side view of the air control means  214  and the tube plates  206  and  207 . The air control means  214  comprises a third detector  215  for detecting the position of the back plate  207 . Third detector  215  has a cylindrical tube  249  and a piston  226 , which, generally have the same shape and function as the first and second position detectors  212  and  213  as described above. In FIG.  10 ( c ), the back plate  207  is in its upper position, and the front plate  206  is in its lower position. The back plate having released and carried a indicator  18  upwardly from hanger  1 , contacts a contact plate  226  of the position detector  215  and moves the contact plate  226  together with its piston into the cylindrical tube of the detector  215 . This causes a pneumatic signal within the air control means  214 , which enables a pressurized air blast through a tube  227 , which is connected to the opening  221  of the back plate  207  by appropriate connection  228 . The air blast through the opening  221  ejects the released indicator  18  through the window  218  of the front plate  206  into the discharge tube  224 . The arrow in FIG.  10 ( c ) indicates the direction of the movement of the indicator  18 . 
     In operation, the back plate  207  moves downwardly to its lower position, which is followed by an upward movement of the front plate  206  to its upper position. The whole movement cycle is repeated periodically, so that a plurality of hangers  1  can be decapped easily and reliably in an automated process. Since one of the plates  206  and  207  is always in its respective lower position, there will be always a number of hangers  1  on the feeding rail  205  waiting to be decapped one after another, as shown in FIGS.  10 ( a )- 10 ( c ). 
     The actuating means  208  controls the movement of the two plates  206  and  207 , so that the front plate  206  cannot move upwardly when the back plate  207  is not in its lower position, and the back plate  207  cannot move upwardly when the front plate  206  is not in its lower position. This ensures that the hangers to be decapped do not slide along the feeding rail  205  under the plates  206  and  207  without being decapped. 
     The first timer  216  controls the regular cycle of the movement of the two plates  206  and  207 , whereas the second timer  217  enables a repeated downward movement of the front plate  206 . If, for example the hook of the hanger  1  is bent or damaged, or the indicator  18  is bent or damaged, the front plate  206  is not permitted to slide downwardly to press or hold the indicator  18  into the recess  219 , since its lower edge contacts the upper edge of the indicator  18  and is therefore restricted in its downward movement. In this case, the timer  217  gives a signal to the actuating means  208  to lift the front plate  206  up again and retry to move it downwardly. This is repeated, until the indicator  18  is properly received in the recess  219  of the back plate  207  and the front plate  206  can move to its lower position without resistance. This problem can already partially be avoided by an appropriate angle or bend of the lower edge of the front plate  206 , as discussed above. 
     Although the system of FIGS. 9 and 10 has been illustrated with only one style of hanger shown in FIG. 5, it is contemplated that a hanger of any other style, including the styles shown in FIG. 5, could be substituted therefore. 
     As illustrated in FIG. 11, a method for re-using hangers having size indicia removably mounted thereon is illustrated in a schematic flowchart form. A hanger manufacturing center  401  molds hangers and ships the hangers via distribution channel  403  to a plurality of garment manufacturers  405  at scattered geographic locales. While a single group of garment manufacturers  405  are illustrated in FIG. 11, it should be noted that in actual practice, there may be hundreds of garment manufacturers that supply garments to any large retail outlet. 
     Simultaneously, a plurality of removable size indicia are molded at  407  and shipped in bundles  413  of size indicia via distribution channel  409  to these same garment manufacturers  405 . 
     At each of the plurality of garment manufacturers  405 , a single hanger  411  and a single index cap from bundle  413  are assembled with the garment manufactured by the U.S. garment manufacturing facility at that geographic local. The size indicia represents at least one characteristic of the garment, and preferably indicates the size of the garment as denoted in the country in which the retail store to which the garment is to be shipped, is located. A plurality of hangers, garments and size indicia are then batched as illustrated at  415 , and the batch is shipped to a retail store  419  or a regional distribution center  417  operated by the retail store chain  419 . 
     The regional distribution center  417  provides a supply of garments on hangers  421  to the various retail stores  419  at scattered geographic locations for sale to consumers. At the point of sale in the retail store  419 , the garments are removed from the hangers and the hangers  411  are returned to the regional distribution center  417 . It is preferred that the hangers are shipped to the distribution center in collapsible pallet-sized boxes with plastic lids. While it is preferable to return all of the hangers to the regional distribution center  417 , it is noted that in actual practice, from 10-25% of the hangers shipped from the distribution center to the retail store as garments on hangers  421  are not returned, but are sold with the garment to the consumer, or are damaged or otherwise lost in use. 
     At the regional distribution center  417 , the hangers are batched and sent to the recycle center  423 , again preferably in the collapsible pallet-sized boxes, where the removable size indicia are removed, and the hangers are inspected and sorted by size and type, and then cleaned. 
     In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the size indicia are automatically removed as previously described with respect to FIGS. 7 and 8. 
     At the recycle center  423  it has been found that from 10-30% of the hangers returned are no longer suitable for reuse because of excess wear, breakage, warpage, gum tags or other debris which can not easily be removed. 
     The hangers that fail the inspection and the index caps are returned via distribution channel  425  to a location which grinds or granulates the hanger rejects and index caps as illustrated at  427 . At location  427 , the hangers are also separated to classify the hangers according to the material from which they were molded, with polypropylene and polystyrene being the two primary materials from which hangers are molded. The polypropylene granulated material is then used to mold consumer hangers as indicated at  429  which may be returned by a distribution channel  431  for sale to consumers. The remaining material not suitable for remolding is sold as scrap as indicated at  433 . 
     At the recycle center  423 , it has been found that from 30-50% of the hangers that originally entered the recycling loop at  403  are available for redistribution. The hangers  411 , without any size indicia matter thereon, are then reshipped to the garment suppliers  405  as part of the order fulfillment at supply line  435 . The supply of hangers at  435  is augmented by freshly molded hangers as indicated at  403  and the combined stream of recycled and new hangers  437  is returned to the garment suppliers  405  as indicated in FIG.  11 . It is contemplated that each hanger will pass through the loop 2 to 6 times before it becomes unrecoverable. The hangers shipped from the recycle center  423  for reuse can be shipped to either US or offshore garment manufacturers. However, since it is contemplated that only 50-80% of the originally molded hangers will be reused the supply may only be sufficient to meet the demands of the closer, in this instance, the US garment manufacturers. The cost of molding vs. shipping internationally must also be taken into consideration when dealing with offshore garment manufacturers. However, the higher shipping costs are often outweighed to meet a particular customer&#39;s demand in an offshore country. 
     Simultaneously therewith, a new plurality of removable size indicia are molded at  407  and shipped via channel  409  to the garment manufacturers  405  to be reassembled with the hanger arriving from product stream  437 . 
     At the present time, it has been found that the labor and material handling required to sort the removable size indicia at the recycle center  423  is more expensive then newly molding the removable size indicia at step  407 . Not only are the removable size indicia molded in a plurality of colors, but each of the colors may represent as many as ten different sizes as herein before previously described. In addition to the sorting, the removable size indicia must be inspected, and reassembled into a magazine or plurality of stacked caps suitable for automated assembly with the hangers and garments at the garment manufacturers  405 . Consequently, in the normal course of proceeding, the removable size indicia are ground at step  427  and sold as scrap at step  433  as indicated by channel  439 . However, it is possible for the size indicia to be sorted at the recycle center  423  and then shipped back to the garment manufacturers for reuse. 
     Presently, a significant percentage of garments sold in the retail stores  419  are manufactured off shore in areas such as China, Thailand, India, Ceylon, Turkey and countries of the Near East. These offshore garment manufacturers are indicated at  441  and provide essentially the same function as the domestic manufacturers indicated at  405  inasmuch as each of these entities manufactures a garment, and then assembles a hanger  411 , an index cap from the bundled stack  413  and the garment in an automated production line to form a product known as G.O.H. (Garment On Hanger) which is ready for display in the retail stores  419 . The G.O.H. garments are then batched as indicated at  443  and shipped via international transport, in generally intermodal or airborne containers, to the regional distribution center  417 . 
     Inasmuch as the hangers, when molded represent a substantial bulk, it is upon occasion, less expensive to mold the hangers offshore as illustrated at  445  and ship the hangers  411  to a regional hanger distribution center  447 , than to mold and ship from the US facility  401 . Regional hanger distribution centers  447  may be located in such diverse geographic locales as Hong Kong, India or Turkey and intended to serve clusters of manufacturing entities located within a few hundred miles of the regional distribution center. 
     Batches or bundles of removable size indicia  413  are also molded at  407  and shipped via distribution channels  409 ,  449  and  451  to the offshore distribution centers  447  or offshore garment manufacturers  441 . The offshore distribution center  447  then makes separate shipments of hangers  411  and bundles of removable size indicia  413  to the offshore garment manufacturers  441 . The offshore garment manufacturer then assembles one of the hangers, one of the removable size indicia and one of the garments to provide a garment on hanger (G.O.H.) wherein the removable size indicia corresponds to the size of the garment. 
     Molding the removable size indicia at a single location such as that indicated at  407  ensures that the colors chosen for the removable size indicia are consistent when they arrive at the retail stores  419  even though the adjacent garments and hangers may have been assembled thousands of miles apart from each other. In addition, the bulk and size of the bundles removable size indicia  413  render them susceptible to transoceanic shipment and use. 
     While in the preferred embodiment, the removable size indicia are all molded in a single location, it would be entirely possible to mold the removable size indicia in one or more offshore molding facilities, provided precise control is maintained over the pigments used in the color indexing scheme. 
     There may also be a flow of returned surplus hangers as indicated along distribution channel  450  and  450   a  which may be used to augment the supply of hangers at  435  instead of molding new hangers at  401 . 
     In the preferred embodiment, the hanger of the present invention is formed from styrene, K resin, H.I. styrene, polypropylene, other suitable thermoplastic or combinations thereof. The indicator of the present invention is formed from styrene or any other suitable plastic material. 
     While there have been shown and described what are considered to be the preferred embodiments of the invention, it will, of course, be understood that various modifications and changes in form or detail can be readily made without departing from the spirit of the invention. It is therefore intended that the invention not be limited to the exact form and detail herein shown and described nor to anything less than the whole of the invention herein disclosed as hereinafter claimed.

Technology Category: 4