US619050A - Clothes-rack - Google Patents

Description

No. 6|9,o5o. Patehted Feb. 7 |399.

Y G. B. SHEPHERD.

' CLOTHES BACK.

(Application led May 24, A189B.)

2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

1m: noms persas co., mvmrruo.. wAsnmmm n. c;

UNITED ASTATES PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE B. SHEPHERD, OE GRAYSON, KENTUCKY.

CLOTH EIS-RACK.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 619,050, dated February 7, 1899.

Application filed May Z4, 1898. Serial No. 681,559. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Beit known that I, GEORGE B. SHEPHERD, a citizen of the United States, residing at Grayson, in the county of Carter and State of Kentucky, have invented a new and useful justable frame into fixed relation with one of the sections of the clothes-rack and to mount the frame so as to occupy a compactly-folded position within the rack, one of the frames adapted to be unfolded for service when the rack proper is collapsed and folded.

A further object of the invent-ion is t0 provide a folding foot adapted to be folded into compact relation to one of the legs or to be unfolded so as to provide a broad base adapted to rest on the iioor when the rack is folded and to rmly hold the same in its upright position against tilting or falling.

With these ends in view my invention consists in the novel construction and arrangement of parts, which willv be hereinafter fully described and claimed.

To enable others to understand my invention, I have illustrated the preferred embodiment thereof in the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, and in which- Figure 1 is a perspective View of my improved clothes-rack'with the parts adjusted to their opened or spread positions. Fig. 2 is a similar perspective view showing the sections of the rack folded or collapsed together and the revoluble frames folded compactly within the sections of the rack, except the frame of the middle section. Fig. 3 is an end elevation of the rack in its folded position and showing one foot-piece in its spread or open position. Fig. i is a horizontal sectional view through one of the sections, illustrating the manner of mounting the revoluble frame therein and the means for locking said revoluble frame against tilting under the load suspended thereon. Fig. 5 is a vertical detail section through one of the standards and an adjustable foot thereon, the plane of the section being indicated by the dotted line 5 5 of Fig. 3; and Fig. 6 is a detail perspective View of the adjustable foot.

Like numerals of reference denote like and corresponding parts in each of the several gures of the drawings.

My foldable clothes-rack relates to that class of devices in which a series of three or more sections are flexibly connected or joined together forfolding in compact relation to each other. In the drawings the rack is represented as consisting of a central section l and two side sections 2 and 3, which are disposed on opposite sides of the central section and are hinged to opposite ends of said central section l to fold laterally against the same. This general style of foldable rack is familiar to those skilled in the art; but it will be understood that the rack may consist of any desired number of sections flexibly connected together and adapted to fold one against the other, so as to assume an extremely compact condition. As shown in the drawings, the side section 2 is joined to one end of the central section 1 by hinges 4., while the other section 3 is connected to the opposite end of the central section by the hinges 5. Each section of my clothes-rack consists of a pair of posts 6 and a series of cross-bars 7, which are rigidly joined to the posts and are spaced equidistant from each other. The number of cross-bars employed in each section is immaterial, although I have showna series of three of such cross-bars in the drawings.

I equip each of the sections of the foldable rack with a revoluble frame which is adapted to be folded in compact relation within the plane of the section or to be extended outwardly therefrom. The revolving frames for the side sections 2 and 3 are indicated by the nu merals 8, while the revolving frame for the central section 1 is shown at 9. The revolving frames 8 for the side sections are mounted in the upper part of said sections in substantially the same plane; but the revolving frame 9 for the central section is mounted therein on a horizontal plane below the corresponding plane of the frames 8 inthe side sections, whereby the frame 9 of the central IOO section may be adjusted to a horizontal position, so as to extend outwardly beyond the side sections when the latter are folded against the central section, thus enabling the frame 9 to be brought into service for the suspension of articles to be dried while the rack is collapsed into the compact position shown by Figs. 2 and 3.

Each revolving frame is of a width to turn freely between two of the cross-bars of the section; but the length of the frame 8 or 9 is less than the distance between the two posts of the section in which the frame is supported, whereby the frame is given a limited horizontal adjustment within the section. The revolving frame is provided at its opposite ends with alined spindles 10 and 11, which are rigidly secured to the end bars of the frame and project outwardly therefrom for suitable distances, and said spindles of each frame are loosely fitted in coincident openings 12, formed in the post 6 of the section. By loosely fitting the spindles of the frame in said posts the frame is free to turn on a horizontal axis and in a vertical plane, and at the same time the frame is capable of a horizontal slidable, movement because its spindles are adapted to play loosely in the openings 12. Each frame is furthermore provided in one of its end rails with a transverse notch 13, adapted when the frame is adjusted endwise in one direction to receive one of the posts of the section, thus locking the horizontal frame against turning under the weight of the load thereon.

One of the important features of my invention consists in the employment of apressurespring 14, which serves to im pe'l the :rotatable frame endwise within the section and to hold the frame into locked engagement with one post of the section when said trame is adj usted to its horizontal position and cause the section-post to tit in the notch 13 of the frame. The pressure-spring which I prefer to employ is in the form of a coiled-wire spring, which is iitted loosely around one of the spindles 11 and is arranged between one end rail of the frame and one post of the section, the respective ends of the spring bearing against the section-post and the end rail of the frame in order that the spring may exert itsl tension against the slidable and revoluble frame. The frames 8 in the upper part of the side sections 2 3 are adapted to engage directly with end posts of said sections; but as the lower frame 9, which is attached to the central section, is adapted to be broughtinto service when the sections of the rack are folded laterally together into compact relation to each other Iflnd it expedient to employ a separate locking-block 3l on one post of the central section 1 for engagement with the notched end 13 of the lower revoluble frame 9.

When the sections of the rack are folded compactly'together and the device is placed in avertical position within a room or apartment, it is liable to tilt or fall over either by unequal distribution of the load thereon or by children knocking against the same. To overcome this objection, I have provided foldable feet 15 16 on the side sections of the 4rack, and these feet are attached to end posts of the side sections at opposite ends of the rack, so as to be extended or unfolded and provide an enlarged supporting-base for the structure when it is collapsed or folded, each foot being adapted to be folded in compact relation to the post of the section to which it is attached when the rack in its entirety is unfolded for service.

Each foot 15 or 16 consists of a guidebar 17, the arms 18 and 19, the slide 20, and links 21 22, which are pivotally attached at their inner ends to the slide and are connected in like manner to the outer ends of the arms 18 19. The arms and links are preferably made of Hat pieces of metal for the purpose of folding compactly when the slide is raised on the guide-bar 17, and said arms and the links are so proportioned that when the slide is lowered and fastened on the bar 17 the arms will eX- tend outwardly beyond the folded sections of the rack and rest firmly on the ioor to prevent the rack from tilting or falling sidewise. Each guidebar 17 is arranged laterally against the outer face of one post of the section, and said bar is fastened at its ends, as at 17, to said section-post. The slide 2O is shown in the drawings as consisting of a single piece of metal having flanges which loosely embrace the guide-bar 17, so as to permit the slide to have the necessary movement longitudinally of the bar 17 and overcome any tendency of the slide to become disengaged from the bar. The inner ends of the arms 18 19 overlap one another, and they are pivoted to the guide-bar 17 by a pin25, while the inner ends of thc links 21 22 are in like manner connected to the slide 2O by a common pivot 23. The arms and links are pivotally connected in pairs by pivot-pins 24, and the arms 18 19 are shorter than the links 21 22, so that when the foot is unfolded the arms will assume the horizontal or slightly-inclined positions, while the links will occupy the diagonal orinclincd positions, so as to serve as braces to the arms when unfolded and as the means for adjusting the arms when the slide is raised orlowered. As the slide is moved upward on the guide-bar the links are drawn upwardly with the same and the arms are moved inwardly, thus causing the arms and links to assume compactly-folded positions and lie nearly within the width of the section-post; but a downward movement of the slides toward the pivotal connection of the arms to the guide-bar forces the arms and links outwardly and spreads the foot, thus causing the arms and links to extend beyond the sections and form an enlarged base for supporting the folded rack in an upright position. To prevent upward movement of the slide and consequent collapsing of the foot, a lockin g device is provided to hold the slide in IOO its adjusted position. In one form of this locking device a pin 26 is adapted to be fitted in a hole 27, provided in the guide-bar at a suitable distance above the pivot 25; but this pin is removable for the 4purpose of moving the slide upwardly on the guide-bar to a position adjacent to another aperture 28 in the guidebar for the reception of the pin 26, which prevents the slide from moving downwardly, and thus serving to hold the foot in its collapsed or folded position. The foot when raised may not be drawn to a position where the links 21 22 overlap each other. Hence the pin 26 may be inserted between the links and into the aperture 28 to occupy a position below the slide when the latter isv raised to prevent the slide from descending and the foot from unfolding. The use ofthe aperture 28 and the pin to fit therein for the purpose of holding the foot in its folded position may, however, be dispensed with, because the links and arms forming the foot may be brought practically into alinement with each other, thus holding the parts of the foot in their folded positions. When the foot is spread and the pin 26 is inserted in the aperture 27, the pin holds the foot against movement by locking the slide to its adjusted position on the guide-bar. To fold the foot, the pin 26 is drawn from the aperture 27, the slide is raised to fold the links and arms inwardly, and the pin 26 is fitted beneath the slide and in the opening 28 to hold the slide against downward movement on the bar. I prefer to employ anotch 29 in one edge of the slide to receive the lockingpin, and in the section-post is formed a recess or cut-out portion 30 for the reception of the flanges on the slide when the latter is lowered.

The operation is as follows: To open the rack for service, the side sections 2 and 3 are drawn outwardly and the frames 8 and 9 are turned horizontally and forced into locking engagement with the section-posts and block 3l. A rack of large capacity is thus provided, adapted to sustain a large amount of fabric. To fold the rack, the sections 2 and 3 are turned inwardly against the central section and the frames 8 are turned to vertical positions within said sections. When the rack is folded, one or both of the adjustable feet may be brought into service by lowering the slide or slides to project the armsand links beyond the rack, and the structure is thus adapted to.be sustained in its upright position against any tendency to fall sidewise. The upper frames 8 cannot be brought into service, because any attempt to turn one of said frames would be obstructed by the other frame; but as the frame 9 of the central section lies below the frames 8 this frame 9 may readily be turned to a horizontal position and pressed by its spring into locking engagement with the block 3l, thus increasing the area of the rack when folded and enabling a certain numbe'r of fabrics to be suspended from the rack even when in its folded position.

I am aware that changes in the form and proportion of parts and in the details of construction may be made by a skilled mechanic without departing from the spirit or sacrifie ing the advantages of the invention, and I therefore reserve the right to make such modiiications as fall within the scope of the invention.

Having thus described the invention, what I claim is l. A foldable clothes-rack consisting of a central section, side sections having hinged connection therewith, revoluble frames mounted in the upper part of the side sections, and another revoluble frame journaled in the central section on a plane below the upper frames and adapted to be turned to a horizontal position and to extend beyond the side sections when the latter are folded against the central section, substantially as described.

2. A foldable clothes-rack com prisinga central section, side sections having hinged connection therewith, independent rotatable frames mounted in the side sections and each adapted to have interlocking engagement therewith when the sections are spread to their open positions, another revolving frame mounted in the central section on a plane below the frames of the side sections, and provided with spindles and with a notch at one end, a pressure-spring seated against the opposite end of the frame for the central section, and a locking-block secured to the central section in a position to engage with the notch of the frame in said central section, for the purpose described, substantially as set forth.

8. A foldable clothes-rack comprisingaseries of hinged sections and an expansilole4 foot attached to a post of one section and adapted to be projected beyond all the sections when the latter are folded compactly together, substantially as described.

4. A foldable clothes-rack comprising the -hin'ged sections and a foldable foot arranged to be expanded beyond the limits of said sections when folded and having arms pivoted to one of the sections, a slide movable on the section and linked to said arms, and means for locking the slide fast in its adjusted positions on the section, substantially as described.

5. In afoldable clothes-rack, the combination with a post, of a bar attached thereto, a slide fitted on said bar, arms pivoted at their inner ends to the bar at a point below the slide, links pivoted to the slide and the arms, and a locking-pin detachably connected to the bar for engagement with the slide, substantially as described.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixed m-y signature in the presence of two witnesses.

GEORGE B. SHEPHERD.

Witnesses:

JAS. L. Poms, ORnIs H. BURLEY.

IOO

IIO

Images