US3043438A - Clothes pole - Google Patents

Description

July 10, 1962 J. CHMIELEWSKI CLOTHES POLE Filed June 13, 1960 CEEEYE CZ'M/ELEWSK/ flaENT- rates This invention relates to a clothes pole and is more particularly concerned with an improved auxiliary, portable clothes pole.

In dwellings and more particularly in apartments, hotels and the like, it is common practice for the tenants or guests to wash articles of clothing which articles must be hanged to dry.

Such articles of clothing are frequently made of rather delicate material and should be hanged to dry indoors and out of the out-of-doors elements. In the case of apartments and hotels, it is frequently the case that adequate means for hanging clothes to dry, indoors or out, is not available.

The problem of finding adequate means to hang clothes to dry, within a dwelling or the like, is also created during rainy weather and the like, even where out of doors drying facilities are provided.

It is common practice for people, when faced with the above problem of hanging clothes to dry, within a dwelling place, to rig lines and other makeshift means, in the bathroom of the dwelling place and over or from which the clothes can be hanged.

The bathroom is generally selected and is the most suitable, since it is, by its very nature, a utility type of room and is such that water dripping from the washed clothes will do no damage.

The ordinary or conventional bathroom is provided with a bath tub which tub is surrounded or enclosed on three sides by suitable walls, that is, a side wall at the back side of the tube and two end walls, one at each each of the tub. The conventional or standard bath tub is five feet long; as a result, the walls at the ends of the tub are approximately five feet apart and will only vary four or five inches, depending upon the construction of the walls and their relationship to the ends of the tub.

Further, it is common practice to provide the walls about a bath tub with a suitable water resistant protective surface, such as tile or plastic covered panels. The protective surfacing ordinarily extends about four feet above the top of the tub and terminates along a straight line or edge. The upper edge is generally furnished with suitable quarter round tile, in the case of tile surfacing, or with a substantially rounded metal strip or molding, in the case of plastic covered panels. In each case, a substantially rounded top edge occurs at the top edge of the protective surface provided on the walls extending about a bath tub.

It is highly advantageous, when drying clothes, in a bathroom, to hang them over the bath tub, since the tub provides a natural basin to catch water dripping from the clothes. Further, the space above the bath tub is, except when the tub is in use, wasted spaced. Hanging the washed clothes over the tub utilizes this wasted space and arranges the clothes where they are not in the way so as to become obstacles in the remainder of the room. An object of the present invention is to provide a novel clothes pole adapted-to be engaged between spaced opposing walls. Another object is to provide a pole of the character referred to which is particularly. adapted to engage and extend between the walls at the opposite sides or ends of a bath tub, to occur in spaced relationship above the tub. A further object of my invention is to provide a clothes pole of the character referred to including, two telescopi- 3,943,438 Patented July 10, 1962 cally related tube sections and spring means related thereto to normally yieldingly urge the sections apart and into pressure engagement with the walls between which the hanger extends.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a pole of the character referred to having rubber wall engaging tips at its opposite ends, each tip having a laterally extending projection establishing a substantially longitudinally, outwardly disposed, arcuate seat to seat on the upper edge of a protective surface on the wall and a longitudinally inwardly disposed hook to support the pole when not in use.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a pole of the character referred to having a novel adjustable spring means for normally yieldingly urging the sections of the pole apart and into pressure engagement with the walls.

An object of the present invention is to provide a clothes pole of the character referred to that can be advantageously adjusted longitudinally to be cooperatively engaged between pairs of opposing walls spaced at various distances. I

Still another object of this invention is to provide a pole of the character referred to that can be collapsed when not in use and which can be advantageously hanged from a suitable support for storage.

The various objects and features of my invention will be fully understood from the following detailed description of a typical preferred form and application of my invention, throughout which description reference is made to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of my new clothes pole construction, showing it engaged between a pair of spaced walls.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged side elevational view of the structure provided by the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken substantially as indicated by line 33 on FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is an elevational view of my new construction showing it collapsed and supported for storage.

FIG. 5 is a perspective View of a modified part of the pole construction.

The clothes pole that I provide involves, generally, a pair of telescopically related tubes A and B, spring means C cooperatively related with the tubesto normally yieldingly urge the tubes axially in opposite directions with respect to each other and mounting tips D at the opposite ends of the tube assembly to engage opposing walls W and to engage and seat on the upper edge of a protective surfacing S provided on the walls W.

The tubes A annd B are simple, straight, elongate tube sections, round in cross-section and in the preferred form of the invention, are formed of a suitable metal, such as aluminum. The tube A is the outer tube and is provided with a straight cylindrical bore 10. The tube B is the inner tube and has a straight cylindrical outer surface 11 which slidably engages in the bore 10 of the outer tube A'and a straight cylindrical bore 12.

The tube A has a-straight or flat outer end 13 to oppose a wall and on which a tip D is engaged and an inner end 14 which is shaped or formed to cooperate with the spring means C, as well hereinafter be described.

The tube B has a straight, fiat, outer end 15 to oppose a wall and on which a tip D is engaged and a straight, flat inner end 16 which terminates in the outer tube A. The inner end portion of the tube B is provided with a laterally opening, elongate, longitudinally disposed slot 17 to receive and cooperate with an element or part of the means C as will hereinafter be described.

The means C that I provide includes a plug 20 in the tube B spaced outwardly of the slot 17, an elongate,

longitudinally shiftable slide 21 in the tube B, inward of the plug, a spring loaded pin 22 carried by the slide to project laterally outwardly through the slot 17, a compression spring 23 between the plug and the slide and normally yieldingly urging the slide With the pin, longitudlnally inwardly on the tube B and a plurality of circumferentially and longitudinally spaced stops 24 at the inner end of the tube A to be engaged by the pin 22.

The plug 20 is a simple cylindrical body of wood, or the like, slidably engaged in the bore 12 of the tube B and is secured infixed position, in predetermined spaced relationship, from the inner end of the tube B by means of a suitable set pin 25.

The slide 21 is an elongate cylindrical member slidably engaged in the bore 12 in the tube B, inward of the plug 20 and is provided with a transverse opening 26 intermediate its ends.

The spring loaded pin 22 carried by the slide 21 is an elongate tubular member having an open bottom end and a closed top. The pin 22 is slidably carried in a. cylindrical cup-like carrier 27 snug-fitted in the opening 26 in the silde. The carrier has an open top end and a closed bottom. A compression spring 28 is arranged in the pin and carrier assembly to extend between the top of the pin and the bottom of the carrier and serves to normally yieldingly urge the pin laterallyoutwardly from the slide so that it projects through the slot 17 in the tube B.

T he stops 24 at the inner end of the tube A are established in the tube A by a suitably machine operation and each has a longitudinally inwardly disposed arcuate face 29 to cooperatively receive the outer end of the pin 22.

The stops 24 are spaced longitudinally and circumferentially about the inner end of the tube A in circumferentially stepped relationship as clearly illustrated in the drawings.

The compression spring 23 is a simple, elongate, helical compression spring and is arranged within the tube B between the plug and the slide and normally yieldingly urges the slide longitudinally inwardly in the tube and the pin longitudinally inwardly in the slot and into pressure engagement with one of stops on the tube A.

With the above relationship of parts, it will be apparent that the tubes A and B can be yieldingly compressed longitudinally inwardly between their outer ends against the resistance of the spring 23. It will be further apparent that the overall longitudinal extent of the tube assembly can be easily and conveniently varied by rotating the tubes A and B relative to each other and so that the pin 22 engages any one of the desired stops 24 on the tube A.

In FIG. of the drawings, I have shown a slightly modified form of tube A wherein the stops 24' are located and established longitudinally outwardly of the inner end 14 of the tube and so that the inner end of the tube is uninterrupted so as not to establish inwardly projecting structure that is apt to catch things and so as to provide additional stability to the tube assembly.

The rubber mounting tips D that I provide on the outer ends of the tubes A and B are alike and each includes a simple, cup-like body having a cylindrical side Wall 30 to engage about the exterior of the tube with which it is related and a fiat end wall 31 to overlie the end of said tube and engage the wall W with which that tube is related.

Each tip D further includes a laterally outwardly extending projection 32 having a laterally downwardly and longitudinally outwardly disposed curved seat 33 and a straight laterally outwardly projecting inner surface 34 with a longitudinally inwardly projecting rib 35 at its outer end and defining a longitudinally inwardly disposed support engaging hook X.

The downwardly disposed seat 33 on the projection 32 is adapted to engage a seat on theupper edge Y of the surfacing S on the wall to which the tip is related.

The seat 33 engaging the top edge of the surfacing S serves to preventthe pole from rotating, as when a piece of clothing is dropped and/or pulled over the pole and also provides frictional bearing engagement between the tip and the wall structure to prevent lateral shifting and displacement of the pole.

The tip being formed of rubber, the projecting seat 32-33 will readily conform to various radii and will advantageously bear on and grip tile, molding and other like stripping normally employed to trim the upper edges of protective surfacings on bathroom Walls.

When the pole is not in use, the pin 22 can be depressed to allow for telescoping together of the tubes A and B and so that the pin 22 bears against the bore 10 of the tube A, acting as a friction brake and normally yieldingly preventing free shifting of the tubes relative to each other. When the tubes are fully telescoped to gether, the assembly is very short and compact and can be advantageously stored away in a minimum of space.

The hook X defined by the surface 34 and rib 35 of the projection 32 serves to facilitate storage of the pole when it is collapsed, as by hanging it from a towel bar T, or other like structure, and as clearly illustrated in FIG. 4 of the drawings.

In practice, I provide a suitable air bleed opening 40 in the tube A, near its outer end so as to prevent air from being trapped within the tubes and prevent them from being telescoped freely.

With the structure set forth above, it will be apparent that the clothes pole that I provide can be advantageously adjusted and set to cooperate with and yieldingly engage opposing walls in various spaced relationship, will engage and seat on moldings or other trim fixed to and projecting from the walls and is such that it can be easily and conveniently collapsed and stored, as by hanging on a towel bar or other like, available supporting structure.

Having described only a typical preferred form and application of my invention, I do not wish to be limited or restricted to the specific details herein set forth, but wish to reserve to myself any modifications or variations that may appear to those skilled in the art and fall within the scope of the following claims. 1

Having described my invention, I claim:

1. A clothes pole of the character referred to including, inner and outer elongate tube sections having inner and outer ends, said inner tube being telescopically engaged in the outer tube, said inner end of the outer tube having circumferentially and longitudinally spaced inwardly disposed stops, said inner tube having a longitudinal slot in its inner end portion, a plug in the tube outward of the slot, a slide in the tube, a pin carried by the slide projecting through the slot and engaging one of thestops and a compression spring between the plug and the slide to normally yieldingly urge the slide longitudinally inwardly and the pin into pressure engagement on the stop and wall engaging tips on the outer ends of the tubes, each of said tips being formed of rubber and including a cup-like body engaged on the outer end of the tube related thereto and having a lateral projection with a laterally downwardly and longitudinally outwardly disposed seat to engage and seat on a projection on a wall.

2. A clothes pole of the character referred to including,

inner and outer elongate tube sections having inner and outer ends, said inner tube being telescopically engaged in the outer tube, said inner end of the outer tube having circumferentially and longitudinally spaced inwardly dis-' posed stops, said inner tube having a longitudinal slot in its inner end portion, a plug in the tube outward of the slot, a slide in the tube, a pin carried by the slide projecting through the slot and engaging one of the stops and a compression spring between the plug and the slide to normally yieldingly urge the slide longitudinally inwardly and the pin into pressure engagement on the stop and Wall engaging tips on the outer ends of the tubes, each of said tips being formed of rubber and including a cup-like body engaged on the outer end of the tube related thereto and having a lateral projection with a laterally downwardly and longitudinally outwardly disposed seat to engage and seat on a projection on a. wall and wall engaging tips on the outer ends of the tubes.

3. A clothes pole of the character referred to including, inner and outer elongate tube sections having inner and outer ends, said inner tube being telescopically engaged in the outer tube, said inner end of the outer tube having circumferentially and longitudinally spaced inwardly disposed stops, said inner tube having a longitudinal slot in its inner end portion, a plug in the tube located outwardly of the slot, a slide in the tube, a pin carried by the slide projecting through the slot and engaging one of the stops and a compression spring between the plug and the slide to normally yieldingly urge the slide longitudinally inwardly and the pin into pressure engagement on the stop and wall engaging tips on the outer ends of the tubes, each of said tips being formed of rubber and including a cuplike body engaged on the outer end of the tube related thereto and having a lateral projection with a laterally downwardly and longitudinally outwardly disposed seat to engage and seat on a projection on a wall and wall engaging tips on the outer ends of the tubes, said pin being depressible to enter the outer tube and to frictionally engage the interior of the said outer tube.

4. A clothes pole of the character referred to including, inner and outer elongate tube sections having inner and outer ends, said inner tube being telescopically engaged in the outer tube, said inner end of the outer tube having circumferentially and longitudinally spaced inwardly disposed stops, said inner tube having a longitudinal slot in its inner end portion, a plug in the tube located outwardly of the slot, a slide in the tube, a pin carried by the slide projecting through the slot andengaging one of the stops and a compression spring between the plug and the slide to normally yieldingly urge the slide lpngitudinally inwardly and the pin into pressure engagement on the stop and wall engaging tips on the outer ends of the tubes, each of said tips being formed of rubber and including a cup-like body engaged on the outer end of the tube related thereto and having a lateral projection with a laterally downwardly and longitudinally outwardly disposed arcuate seat to engage and seat on a projection on a wall, a laterally projecting inner surface with a longitudinally inwardly projecting head at its outer end defining a support engaging hook.

5. A clothes pole of the character referred to including, inner and outer elongate tube sections having inner and outer ends, said inner :tube being telescopically engaged in the outer tube, said inner end of the outer tube having circumferentially and longitudinally spaced inwardly disposed stops, said inner tube having a longitudinal slot in its inner end portion, a plug in the tube located outwardly of the slot, a slide in the tube, a pin carried by the slide projecting through the slot and engaging one of the stops and a compression spring between the plug and the slide to normally yieldingly urge the slide longitudinally inwardly and the pin into pressure engagement on the stop and wall engaging tips on the outer ends of the tubes, each of said tips being formed of rubber and including a cup-like body engaged on the outer end of the tube related thereto and having a lateral projection with a laterally downwardly and longitudinally outwardly disposed arcuate seat to engage and seat on a projection on a wall, a laterally projecting inner surface with a longitudinally inwardly projecting bead at its outer end defining a support engaging hook, said pin being depressible to enter the outer tube and to frictionally engage the interior of the said outer tube.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 527,273 Fowler Oct. 9, 1894 1,639,551 Booth Aug. 16, 1927 2,138,377 Hamlin a- Nov. 29, 1938 2,605,987 Brown Aug. 5, 1952 2,722,970 Stechmann 'Nov. 8, 1955 2,746,203 Gibas May 22, 1956

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