EP0037229A1

EP0037229A1 - A line gripping peg

Info

Publication number: EP0037229A1
Application number: EP81301236A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Richard Flynn
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1980-03-22
Filing date: 1981-03-23
Publication date: 1981-10-07
Also published as: GB2072736A

Abstract

A nestable line gripping peg (1) has an elongate body (3) and a pair of arms (2) extending from one end of the body (3), to define an elongate hollow structure having frusto-conical inner and outer surfaces so that it can receive at least the body of a like peg in nesting arrangement. The peg is made of resilient plastics material. The facing edges (5a, 5, 6, 7, 8) of the arms (2) are profiled so as to define a throat (6) intermediate the ends of the arms (2) for retaining the peg (1) on a gripped line.

Description

This invention relates to a line gripping peg comprising an elongate body portion and a pair of gripping arms extending from one end of the body portion.
Line gripping pegs are commonly used for securing clothes to a line for drying and are thus frequently referred to as clothes pegs, but similar pegs are used for drying photographic films, or for displaying articles for inspection or sale, e.g. magazines and the like.
One known peg is made of a single piece of wood or plastics, and depends on the resilience of the wood or plastics to provide gripping forces. Another known peg comprises two pieces of wood or plastics held and forced together by a metal spring. When not in use, these known pegs must be stored in a random arrangement, for example in a bag or box, which can create difficulties for the user in removing them from the storage location and orienting them for use. Also it can be difficult to hold and manipulate more than two or three pegs simultaneously.
It is accordingly on object of the present invention to provide a line gripping peg which will be capable of ordered storage, to facilitate handling and orientation in use.
The line gripping peg according to the invention is characterized in that the body portion and the arms are of resilient plastics material and together define an integral elongate hollow structure, which is shaped and dimensioned to receive at least the body portion of a like peg in nesting arrangement. The pegs according to the invention can be stored in an ordered manner, and can be removed from a storage container as a group ready for use, in the form of an elongate assembly, from which individual pegs can be readily detached for use on a line or the like.
An outwardly extending protuberance may be provided on an outer surface . of the peg, and the peg may comprise a receiver portion for engaging the protuberance of a like peg, when the peg receives the like peg in nesting arrangement. In this way, an elongate assembly of nested pegs can be held together in a positive manner, but individual pegs may be readily detached from the assembly for use.
In a preferred embodiment, the hollow structure has a generally frusto-conical outer surface, which may have elongate indented areas therein to form holding surfaces for the user, and an inner surface which is generally frusto-conical at least between the free ends of the arms and a region of the hollow structure in the vicinity of the ends of the indented areas near the arms. Such a configuration permits the peg to be nested within - a like peg in a particularly convenient nanner, and the provision of the indented holding areas on the exterior of the peg facilitates handling by the user.
Each arm of the preferred embodiment of the peg has a pair of edges, each of which faces a corresponding edge of the other arm and is spaced from it. Each edge has a first portion adjoining and extending from the body portion of the peg, which is spaced apart from a corresponding portion of the facing edge of the other arm, over at least a part of its length, by a substantially constant distance. A second portion of.the edge adjoins and extends from the first portion and is spaced from a corresponding portion of the facing edge of the other arm by a distance which is less than that between the first edge portions. The second edge portions thus define a throat, whereby the peg is prevented from springing off a gripped line. A third portion of the edge adjoins the second edge portion and extends therefrom to the free end of the arm, and is spaced from the third edge portion of the facing edge of the other arm by a distance which increases towards the free end. These increasingly spaced apart edge portions provide for easy application of the peg to a line and serve to guide it onto the line. At least the third edge portions, and preferably the entire extent of the edges, may be provided with flanges.
The protuberance may be disposed on the outer generally frusto-conical surface and the throat may comprise the receiver portion for engaging the protuberance of a nesting peg. In the preferred embodiment, the end of the body portion remote from the arms may be closed It is. another feature of the peg according to the invention that numbers and/or letters may be embossed on them. Thus they may serve not.only for the purpose of holding clothes or other articles on a line, but they may also be used as educational playthings by children. To this end, they may be formed of brightly coloured plastics and made in a variety of different colours.
An embodiment of a line gripping peg according to the invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a side view of a line gripping peg according to the invention;
Figure 2 is a section on the line A-A of Figure 1;
Figure 3 is a section on the line B-B of Figure 1;
Figure 4 shows two pegs, nested together..

The line gripping peg 1 according to the invention consists of a hollow structure formed of a resilient plastics material, comprising an elongate body portion 3 and a pair of gripping arms 2 extending from one end of the body portion, the end 12 of the body portion remote from the arms being closed. The outer surface of the hollow structure is generally frusto-conical.
Over a substantial portion of its length, the inner surface of the hollow structure is also generally frusto-conical corresponding to the frusto-conical outer surface of the peg, so that pegs according to the invention can be nested within one another as hereinafter described. The peg may suitable be formed by injection moulding.
The facing edges 4 of the arms 2 have first edge portions 5 adjoining and extending from the body portion 3, which are spaced apart by a substantially constant distance over at least a part of their length, the spacing between these portions of the edges being determined by the size of line to be gripped and the nature of the article to be secured to the line.
The portions 5, at their-ends adjoining the body portion 3, have regions 5a which meet one another and are of part-circular profile, the diameter of the circle being greater than the spacing between the remainder of the portions 5, so that flexing of the arms, during use, may be facilitated. The part-circular region 5a is also adapted to receive the line gripped by the peg.
The spacing between the edges is reduced at second portions 6 of the edges from the spacing between the edge portions 5, to define a throat between the portions 5 of the edges and outer portions 7 thereof, the throat serving in use to prevent the peg from accidentally coming off the gripped line.
The spacing between the outer portions 7 of the edges, which extend from the portions 6 defining the throat to the extremities of the arms, progressively increases over the lengths of these portions, thus forming a guiding section of the peg which, in use, serves to guide'the pegon to the line and article to be gripped.
Flanges or beads may be provided on the edge portions, so that the guiding function of edge portion 7 may, in use, be improved. The flanges also serve to prevent damage to clothes or other articles being secured by the peg which might otherwise be caused by a sharp edge portion, and they also strengthen the peg. Flanges, where provided, may be directed outwardly from the peg.
The lengths of the edge portions 5 and 7 are not critical and may be determined by factors such as the resilience of the plastics material and the dimensions of the lines and articles to be gripped. The portions 8 of the edges are profiled to provide a smooth transition between the portions 5 and the throat portions 6 so that in use the peg may be removed without difficulty from a gripped line.
The frusto-conical outer surface of the peg has, in the body portion 3, two elongate indented areas 9, which provide holding surfaces, to be grasped when the peg is in use. These indented areas may be ribbed on their surfaces to facilitate gripping with the fingers. The inner surface of the peg is generally frusto-conical over the portion of its length extending from the extremities of the arms to the vicinity of the ends of the indented areas nearer the'arms. These frusto-conical surfaces are shaped and dimensioned so that the inner surface can receive the frusto-conical outer surface of another like peg for the pegs to be nested, one within the other.
The portion of the inner surface of the peg between the vicinity of the above-mentioned ends of the indented areas.9 and the closed end of the body portion may also be generally frusto-conical or it may be cylindrical as shown. A step portion 13 forms a transition between the first-mentioned frusto-conical portion of the inner surface of the peg and the cylindrical portion.
A protuberance may be formed on the outer surface of the peg to retain it when nested within another like peg. Such a protuberance 10 is shown in Figure 1 on the body portion, near the end of the body portion adjoining the arms, but it may be located elsewhere on the peg. The peg may also comprise a receiver portion to engage the protuberance of a like peg when it receives the like peg in nesting arrangement. This receiver portion may comprise the throat defined by the edge portions.
A pair of nested pegs is shown in Figure 4 which shows the location of the protuberance of one peg within the throat of the peg within which it is nested, so as to.hold the pegs together.
A drain hole may be formed in the body portion of the peg at its closed end, or the body portion may be formed with an open end.
The pegs may be highly coloured, in a variety of colours, and may have letters and/or numbers embossed or printed thereon so that they may additionally serve as educational playthings for children.
The plastics material from which the pegs are formed may be polystyrene, or preferably polypropylene.

Claims

1. A line gripping peg (1) comprising an elongate body portion (3) and a pair of gripping arms (2) extending from one end of the body portion, characterized in that the body portion (3) and the arms (2) are of resilient plastics material and together define an integral elongate hollow structure, which is shaped and dimensioned to receive at least the body portion of a like peg in nesting arrangement.

2. A line gripping peg according to claim 1, characterized in that an outer surface of the peg has an outwardly extending protuberance (10), and the peg comprises a receiver portion (6, 8) for engaging the protuberance of a like peg, when the peg (1) receives the like peg in nesting arrangement.

3. A line gripping peg according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the hollow structure has a generally frusto-conical outer surface and an inner surface which is generally frusto-conical over at least a substantial portion of the length of the hollow structure.

4. A line gripping peg according to claim 3, characterized in that the generally frusto-conical outer surface of the body portion (3) has elongate indented areas (9) therein to form holding surfaces for a.user and the inner surface of the hollow structure is generally frusto-conical between the free ends of the arms (2) and a region of the hollow structure in the vicinity of the ends of the indented areas (9) nearer the arms (2).

5. A line gripping peg according to any of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that each arm (2) has a pair of edges (5a, 5, 6, 7, 8), and each edge faces a corresponding edge (5a, 5, 6, 7, 8) of the other arm (2) and is spaced therefrom.

6. A line gripping peg according to claim 5, characterized in that each edge (5a, 5, 6, 7, 8) has a first portion (5a, 5) adjoining and extending from the body portion (3), which first edge portion (5a, 5), over at least part (5) of its length, is spaced from the first edge portion (5) of the facing edge of the other arm by a substantially constant distance, a second edge portion (6, 8) adjoining and extending from the first edge portion (5), which second edge portion (6, 8), over at least a part (6) of its length, is spaced from the second edge portion (6) of the facing edge of the other arm by a distance less than that between the first edge portions (5), so that the second edge portions define a throat (6), and a third edge portion (7) adjoining the second edge portion (6) and extending therefrom to the free end of the arm (2), which third edge portion (7) is spaced from the third edge portion of the facing edge of the other arm by a distance which increases towards the free end.

7. A line gripping peg according to claim 6, characterized in that at least the third edge portion (7) of the edge (5a, 5, 6, 7, 8) has a flange

8. A line gripping peg according to claim 6 or 7, when dependent on claims 2 and 3, characterised in the outwardly-extending protuberance (10) is disposed on the generally frusto-conical outer surface of the body portion, and the throat-defining second edge portions (6) of each facing pair of the edges of the arms (2) comprise the receiver portion (6, 8) for engaging the protuberance of a like peg when the peg receives the like peg in nesting arrangement.

9. A line gripping peg according to any preceding claim, characterized in that the end (12) of the body portion (3) remote from the arms (2) is closed.

10. A line gripping peg according to any preceding claim, characterized in that numbers and/or letters are embossed thereon.