US2672929A - Drape pleat-spacer - Google Patents

Description

H. A.'EGGERT DRAPE PLEAT-SPACER March 23, 1 954 Filed April 29, 1952 INVENTOR: HERBERT A. EG GE RT BY ATT'YS Patented Mar. 23,:1954

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The link member 24 has end pivot apertures 29 and a central pivot aperture 30. Each of the links has a planar face 3| on the side that is opposed to its mating link. The members are oi.' channel-shape in transverse section, comprising a web portion 32 and side flanges 33 for longitudinal stiiness.

The web portion 32 is of the same thickness from end to end but is bowed longitudinally so as to be flush with the inner face of the link member for a considerable distance each side of the central pivot 28 and to be flush with the outer edges of the iianges 33 adjacent the end pivots, thus providing an unbroken outer surface 34 sloping toward each end pivotal area.

This channel section of the links gives them the required strength with a minimum use oi material and also prevents distortion thereof under unequally distributed strains to sticking of hangers cn the traverse rod.

The pivotal studs 28 and 26 are without llets at their juncture with the body of the member and the bearing apertures 23 and 30 on the member 24 have thin boss formations 35 and 36 concentric with the pivot apertures on the inner n face of the bar for reducing friction between the opposed faces of adjoining links.

The inclined unbroken surfaces 34 in the iinished structure, as shown assembled in Figs. 2 and 6, are curved to taper toward the relatively thin end portionsof the members and are spaced from the depending portions of the tips 23 and shanks I8 of the curtain hooks so as to prevent any interference by the curtain hooks with the free movement of the links of the lazy tong structure, regardless of how the drape may be swung, while the'lazy tongs are being expanded or contracted.

In practice, the links of the lazy tong are assembled into two standard unit forms, shown respectively at the left and right sides of the composite Fig. 6, the left-hand form being what is herein referred to as a single X-unit panel consisting of two links pivotally connected at their central pivot 28; and the other form consisting of eight links forming a basic multiple X-panel of four such X-units. In each of these unit forms, the central pivots 28 are swaged by locally applied heat and pressure so as to form heads 31 permanently vconnecting the male and female links in pairs. The free ends of the tubular pivots 26 are similarly swaged by local heat and pressure to produce outwardly extending head flanges 38 forming permanent pivotal connections on the three intermediate end pivot joints shown at the top and bottom of the panel in Fig. 6. This swaging is done without reduction in diameter of the bore 21. The pivots 26 at the ends of the single X-units, as sho-wn at the left of Fig. 6, are not headed and likewise the pivots 26 at the extreme ends of the multiple panel units, as shown at the right of Fig. 6, are left unexpanded for the purpose of conveniently extending thel lazy tong structure by the addition of other multiple panel units or single X-units as the particular situationmay require.

In practical application, these two standard sizes of panel units, namely single X-panel units and 4 X-panel units, in which the links are 5% inches long between the centers of end pivots, can be combined so as to satisfy all requirements of pleat spacing arising from the use of combinations of standard commercial widths of material in the manufacture ofstandard or custom-i 4 made drapes. Usually widths of 48 or 52 inches are reduced by pleating 25 inches.

Special hanger clips 39 of S-hook form, made of tempered spring wire, are provided for connecting the upper end pivots 26 of the lazy tong structure to the hangers I2 of the curtain rods and are illustrated in Figs. 2 and 7.' Each of these S-hooks, as shown in detail in Fig. '1, has its lower part bent to a parallel sided U-shape, constituting a pair of spaced jaws comprising the central horizontal bar 40, serving as an upper jaw, a spacing portion 4| and a lower horizontal bar or jaw 42, the free end of which is bent inward at right angles to form a lip 43 directed toward the upper jaw 40.

The length of the inwardly directed lip 43 is slightly more thanvthe diameter of the bore 21 of the pivot 26; the space between the arms 40 and 42 is approximately equal to the radial distance between the outer end of the link and the adjacent side of the bore 21 so that when the lip 43 and the arm 42 are inserted through the bore 21, this part of the S-hook will lock the two links in their pivotal relation to each other for connecting one panel unit to the other, as above described. The end of the lip 43 is spaced outward from the arm 46 to facilitate the entrance of the arm 42 into the bore 21. The lower jaw 42 of the S-hook being resilient is thus easily inserted into the pivot aperture 21. with the lip 42 inclined to the axis of the bore, but once inserted it acts as a positive means for securing the respective links together and is locked by snap action against accidental dislodgment.

The upper part of the S-hook 39 is bent to an inverted V-shape to provide a seat or notch 44 for engagement with the eye of a pleat hanger l2 and to provide a depending arm 45 which extends downward beyond the shoulder 40.| formed by the juncture of the central bar 40 with the part 4I of the hook. The lower end of the depending arm 45 may be readily inserted into the eye of the hanger i2 which snaps past the shoulder 40.| and comes into place with the seat 44 resting in the hanger eye.

When two panel units are connected together, the upper pivotal connection is locked against accidental disconnection by the S-hook. The lower pivotal connection is similarly locked by inserting a self-tapping screw 46 into the bore 21 of the respective pivot 26, the head 48 of the screw being of larger diameter than the bearing bore 29 of the connecting link member, as will be understood from Fig.v6.

It will be seen that the lazy tongs device hangs freely behind and in parallel relation to the drape, and also that the entire lazy tong structure occupies no more space between the drape and wall than does the existing hanger hardware and requires no change in such hardware. It does not interfere with the free hanging of the drape, but maintains the pleats of the drape and its hangers in uniformly spaced relation in all positions of travel, whether moved by hand or by cord. In the form shown,` the first multiple panel unit will serve iive pleats, each additional multiple panel unit will serve four additional pleats, and single pleat units can be added as required for any actual number of pleats.

Although but one specific embodiment of this invention is herein shown and described, it will be understood that details of the construction shown may be altered or omitted without departing from the spirit of the invention as de- .nedby the followingclaims. l

I claim:

1. In a curtain hanger structure having a trackway and a series of pleat hangers shiftable therealong and each having a hook engaging element, a pleat spacer comprising a series of crossed pairs of bars pivotally connected in lazy tongs fashion and having open bores at their bar-end-pivotal connections on one side of the series, and a series of S-hooks severally engaged in said bores and connected in succession to said hook engaging elements.

2. In a curtain hanger structure having a trackway and a series of pleat hangers shiftable therealong and each having a hook engaging element, a pleat spacer comprising a series of crossed pairs of bars pivotally connected in lazy tongs fashion and having open bores at their bar-end-pivotal connections on one side of the series, and a series of S-hooks severally engaged in said bores and connected in succession to said hook engaging elements; each said S-hook having an upper hook and a lower hook open toward opposite sides thereof, the upper hook being of inverted V-shape and the lower hook being of U-shape with a laterally directed lower jaw extendable through such pivotal bore and with an upwardly extending lip, the length of said lower jaw approximating the length of such bore and the height of said lip approximating the diameter of such bore.

3. In a draping pleat spacer, a lazy tong link having an integral pivot stud near one end and having a bore extending axially through said stud, a second lazy tong link having a bearing hole near one end in which said stud is seated, and a hanger clip of resilient wire having a hook with a U-shaped portion spanning the space between said bore and the adjacent ends of both said links and having an arm extending axially through said bore and terminating in a lip inhibiting separation of said links from each other and from said clip.

4. A draping pleat spacer, comprising a pair of lazy tong panel structures each comprising a pair of links of equal length pivoted together midway of their ends, one link of each pair having integral pivot studs at its opposite ends with bores extending therethrough axially of the respective studs, and the other link of each pair having bearing apertures for such studs at its opposite ends, the pivot studs at one side of one said panel structure being seated in the bearing aperture at the adjacent side of the other said panel structure, and a hanger clip of resilient wire having a hook extending through the bore of one of said last named pivot studs and resiliently embracing the end portions of the 6 C respective links to latch same against accidental separation.

5. A drapery pleat spacer, comprising a pair of lazy tong bars pivotally connected together at one end, such pivotal connection comprising an integral axially bored stud on one bar and a bearing aperture therefor in the other bar, and a hanger clip of spring wire having oppositely directed hooks, one hook extending crosswise over the bar ends, then radially inward to the bore of the stud, then through the bore and then radially outward from the bore to prevent separation of the pivotal connection, and the other said hook being adapted to serve as a suspension for the bars.

6. A drapery pleat spacer, comprising a pair of lazy tong bars pivotally connected together at one end, such, pivotal connection comprising an integral axially bored stud on one bar and a bearing aperture therefor in the other bar, and a hanger clip of spring wire of S-hook form having oppositely directed hooks lying in a common plane, one hook extending crosswise over the bar ends, then radially inward to the bore of the stud, then through the bore and then radially outward from the bore to prevent separation of the pivotal connection, and the other said hook being adapted to serve as a suspension for the bars.

7. A drapery pleat spacer, comprising a pair of lazy tong bars pivotally connected together at one end, such pivotal connection comprising an integral axially bored stud on one bar and a bearing aperture therefor in the other bar, and a hanger clip of spring wire comprising a medial portion of a length substantially equal to the combined thickness of said bars, one end portion being in the form of a nearly closed rectangularly looped hook extending through the axial bore at said pivotal connection and latchingly embracing the adjacent bar ends, and the other end portion being in the form of a nearly closed triangularly looped hook adapted to serve as a suspension for the bars.

HERBERT A. EGGERT.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 942,093 Merrick Dec. '7, 1909 1,299,429 Curtiss Apr. 8, 1919 1,514,722 Perkins Nov. 11, 1924 2,584,111 Brenner Feb. 5, 1952 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 4,364 Great Britain Mar. 13, 1889

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