Clothes Display Stand

For displaying articles of clothing in showrooms and sales areas, it is of essential importance that it should be possible for a maximum number of articles of clothing to be displayed to the best possible effect in a predetermined section of space. One possibility of achieving this is to hang the individual articles of clothing offset relative to one another, so that not only a relatively large area of the particular article of clothing at the front, but also at least a narrow vertical portion of those behind it is visible. Such stands have become known in a first embodiment, for example from German Patent Specification No. 2,941,648 and German Offenlengusschrift No. 2,916,226, and in these stop pins attached eccentrically to oblique supporting rods offset relative to one another are used as retention means for conventional clothes-hangers. These retention means ensure that the suspension hooks of clothes-hangers resting freely on the supporting rods have a natural tendancy to swing out, and, as seen in a horizontal projection, this results in an inclination of the clothes-hangers of approximately 60.degree. relative to the longitudinal axis of the supporting rods, the arrangement of the supporting rods themselves ensuring efficient utilization of space.

Although, when two adjacent articles of clothing are movable to a sufficient extent, the inclination of the clothes-hangers automatically results in the desired exposure of the displayed articles, nevertheless, if the garments rest flush against one another, the adhesion occurring thereby is sufficient to impede a free movement. The garments then have to be moved by hand, so that the desired display effect can be achieved.

European Patent Application No. 0,069,876 shows a clothes stand, in which the supporting arms preferably projecting radially from a central column are equipped with a plastic covering which has a comb-like bearing portion for receiving the suspension hooks of clothes-hangers. The comb teeth are at an angle of approximately 60.degree. relative to the longitudinal axis of the supporting arms and give the suspension hooks of the clothes-hangers a corresponding obligatory inclination, so that there is no need to align the clothes-hangers with one another. Although the comb-like bearing portion is capable of producing the desired aligning effect on the clotheshangers, the provision of the plastic covering means that there is a restriction to standard lengths, and the shaping of the teeth on the plastic covering is not without its problems.

The object of the invention is to provide a clothes display stand according to the pre-characterizing clause of patent claim 1, in which, in particular, the benefits of a fixed index retention toothing on the extensionarms are also utilized, but which, furthermore, is equipped with a specific toothing which is simple to make. Moreover, extension arms on the stand structure will be made removable, to allow the best possible utilization of a particular showroom area.

The solution for achieving the object arising from this emerges from the characterizing features of patent claim 1. Embodiments thereof are defined by the dependent claims.

The invention is explained below by way of example with reference to the drawing. In the drawing:

FIGS. 1a to c and 2a to c show the clothes display stand according to the invention in two typical wallmounted embodiments, with the clothes supporting arrangement in a perspective representation, a plan view and a side view (FIGS. 1c, 2c) respectively;

FIGS. 3a and 3b show a single-column embodiment with a vertical tube and a fixed or movable foot arrangement and with extension arms which are arranged fixedly on a pull-out tube vertically adjustable telescopically in the vertical tube; and

FIGS. 4a to c show a further single-column embodiment with horizontal radial jibs, to the end of each of which is fixed a vertically adjustable pull-out tube with a clothes-hanger extension arm.

FIG. 1a shows a first embodiment of the clothes display stand according to the invention, where extension arms 3 with a notch arrangement 4 according to FIG. 1c can be suspended at selectable heights in a known way on column members 1 or other supporting or fastening means of a room-dividing or rear-wall arrangement composed of wall elements 2. The extension arms are inclined downwards approximately at the angle .alpha.=90+15.degree.=105.degree..

In the plan view of FIG. 1b, the two extension arms 3 shown in the perspective drawing can be seen in their angular relationship relative to the wall elements 2. The extension arm on the left is at an acute angle .beta..sub.1 to the wall elements 2 in the lefthand direction, whilst the extension arm on the right is at an approximately identical angle .beta..sub.2 to these in the righthand direction. The angles .beta..sub.1 and .beta..sub.2 are each approximately 90-30.degree.=60.degree., so that the articles of clothing hang approximately parallel to the wall. Of course, the inclination of adjacent extension arms on one and the same wall arrangement can be selected so as to be in a uniform direction to the left or the right. This is governed by the relative position of a clamping member 5 on the extension arm 3, as can be seen in FIG. 1c. The extension arm 3 having the notch arrangement 4 is attached at an angle .gamma. of approximately 15.degree. to this clamping member 5 which is composed of a hooked plate 5.1 stamped from a flat strip material and of a shield plate 5.2 matching the surface of the column member 1. The extension arm 3 is at an angle .omega. of approximately 30.degree. relative to the hooked plate and contains V-shaped grooves 6, the lower flank 6.1 of which is approximately at right angles to the direction of the extension arm, whilst the upper flank 6.2 is inclined upwards at an angle .delta. of 35.degree.-38.degree.. Moreover, as seen from above, the grooves 6 are at an oblique angle .tau. of approximately 60.degree. to the extension arm 3. As a result of this inclination of the grooves 6 which are approximately 10 mm deep and are at a division T of approximately 20-25 mm, the hooks 7 shown diagrammatically (in FIG. 1b) and belonging to the clothes-hangers 8 urge the latter into an appropriate inclination relative to the extension arm 3. This necessarily produces the desired staggered display of the articles of clothing placed on the hangers 8.

It goes without saying that the inclination of the grooves 6 at the angle z can also be made mirrorsymmetrical, so that an opposite inclination of the clothes-hangers can be obtained. See also FIG. 3b in this respect.

FIG. 2a shows a second embodiment of the clothes display stand, in which a room-dividing or rear-wall arrangement according to FIG. 1a can be used once again as a supporting device. Suspended on the column members 1 are horizontal jibs 9, to the front end of each of which is fastened one end of a supporting rod 10 performing the function of an extension arm 3 and having a notch arrangement 4 according to FIG. 1c, shown diagrammatically. According to FIG. 2c, and in a similar way to FIG. 1c, the supporting rod 10 runs between the column members 1 at the angle .gamma. of approximately 15.degree., the inclination being either in the clockwise direction or in the anti-clockwise direction. The height difference H between the jibs 9 which results from this corresponds to an even multiple of the distance between adjacent indexed suspension points on the column members 1. As shown by the plan view FIG. 2b, the clotheshangers 8 are oblique relative to the supporting rod at the angle

This inclination can be in the lefthand or the righthand direction, as required.

A single-column embodiment of the clothes display stand is shown in FIGS. 3a and 3b. A vertical tube 13 arranged on a fixed or movable foot arrangement 14 guides a pull-out tube 15 movable telescopically and lockable in its interior. Attached to the top end of the pull-out tube 15 is a number (2 in the example) of extension arms 3 which are each equipped with a notch arrangement 4 (FIG. 1c)and which are inclined outwards and downwards at an angle .gamma. of approximately 15.degree. in a similar way to the embodiments described previously. There can, per se, be any number of extension arms 3'. In the two-armed embodiment illustrated in FIG. 3b, the arms 3' are arranged in a V-shaped formation at an angle of approximately 120.degree. to one another, and they are arranged symmetrically relative to the plane X--X of the pull-out tube. This, in conjunction with the angling .tau. of the grooves 6 (FIG. 1c) which, as mentioned, can be directed to the left or to the right on the arms 3', ensures that the clothes-hangers 8 on the two arms 3' are in a parallel position.

Finally, FIGS. 4a to 4c show an embodiment of the clothes display stand which is based on a single-column supporting device 16, where 3 horizontal jibs 18 distributed symmetrically project from the top end of a vertical tube 17. Each of these jibs 18 has, at its radially outer end, a fixing device 19, in which rotationally indexable pull-out tubes 20 are held in a known way so as to be vertically displaceable (and lockable). Each pull-out tube 20, shown individually in FIG. 5b, carries, at its top end, an extension arm 3' connected firmly to the pull-out tube 20. As mentioned previously, the angle of inclination .gamma. of the extension arm 3' is approximately 15.degree..

It can be seen from the plan view (FIG. 4c) how the pull-out tubes 20 can be set in specific angular positions relative to the horizontal jibs 18 by means of the rotationally indexable fixing devices 19. If the pull-out tubes 20 are pivoted vertically, preferably uniormly, in the direction of the arrow A in the fixing devices 19, clothes display stands according to FIGS. 4a to 4c can easily be adapted to garments of differing size.