U.S. patent application number 13/011145 was filed with the patent office on 2012-07-26 for spiral towel rack.
Invention is credited to Salvatore Sisto.
Application Number | 20120187059 13/011145 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 46543386 |
Filed Date | 2012-07-26 |
United States Patent
Application |
20120187059 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Sisto; Salvatore |
July 26, 2012 |
SPIRAL TOWEL RACK
Abstract
A wall mountable coil rack is provided for securing a plurality
of items. The rack includes a continuous coiled beam with a top
connector and a bottom connector. The beam includes a plurality of
layers, where item are held in between adjacent layers. The layers
have a horizontal area smaller than the horizontal area of the
items. Accordingly, the layers are hidden from view when the rack
is filled with items.
Inventors: |
Sisto; Salvatore; (Bradley
Beach, NJ) |
Family ID: |
46543386 |
Appl. No.: |
13/011145 |
Filed: |
January 21, 2011 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
211/45 ;
211/106 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A47B 55/02 20130101;
A47K 10/10 20130101; A47B 81/00 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
211/45 ;
211/106 |
International
Class: |
A47K 10/10 20060101
A47K010/10; A47B 81/00 20060101 A47B081/00 |
Claims
1. A wall mountable apparatus for holding a plurality of objects,
comprising: a top wall connector, for attaching to a wall; a bottom
wall connector, for attaching to a wall; a continuous beam
connecting the top wall connector to the bottom wall connector;
wherein the continuous beam includes a plurality of parallel
layers, each layer having a front and a rear, the plurality of
layers being substantially parallel; wherein a layer connector
connects the end of one layer to the front of an adjacent layer,
and the layer connector has a flat surface that rests adjacent to a
wall when the top wall connector and bottom wall connector are
attached to a wall.
2. The wall mountable apparatus of claim 1, wherein the continuous
beam is constructed of a material selected from the group
consisting of: aluminum, hard plastic, and stainless steal.
3. The wall mountable apparatus of claim 1, wherein the parallel
layers are rounded for at least half their perimeter .
4. The wall mountable apparatus of claim 1, wherein the layer
connectors are straight.
5. The wall mountable apparatus of claim 1, wherein the plurality
of layers are substantially parallel to the ground when the top
wall connector and the bottom wall connector are attached to a
wall.
6. The wall mountable apparatus of claim 1, wherein the
cross-section of the continuous beam is round.
7. The wall mountable apparatus of claim 1, wherein the parallel
layers are the shape of a partial circle.
8. The wall mountable apparatus of claim 1, wherein said objects
are bath towels.
9. The wall mountable apparatus of claim 1, comprising five
parallel layers.
10. A wall mountable apparatus for holding a plurality of objects,
comprising: a single continuous beam, having a first end and a
second end, the continuous beam including: a plurality of parallel
shelves, the shelves being parallel to the ground; a plurality of
shelve connectors for connecting the parallel shelves, the shelve
connectors resting against a wall when the first end and second end
are mounted to the wall.
11. A linen storage system, comprising: a wall; a first fastener
and a second fastener, said first fastener and said second fastener
mounted to said wall; a continuous beam connecting said first
fastener to said second fastener, said continuous beam including: a
plurality of loops, each loop including a towel support section and
a rear angled section, said rear angled section connecting two
adjacent loops; and a plurality of items, each item being
positioned between two adjacent loops, and hiding one of said loops
from view.
Description
RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is related to Design Patent Application
Ser. No. 29/354,774, filed on Jan. 28, 2010.
BACKGROUND
[0002] 1. Field of the Invention
[0003] The present invention relates to a storage device that is
mounted on a wall.
[0004] 2. Prior art
[0005] Storage devices, including towel racks are well known to the
vast majority of consumers. In its simplest form, a towel rack
consists of a single horizontal bar that is held away from a wall
by two attachment mechanisms--one at east end. The bar is
positioned away from the wall, to allow a towel to rest upon it.
More complicated racks include multiple bars for supporting
multiple objects. Some include hooks for hanging objects and solid
surfaces for storing toiletries.
[0006] Existing towel racks are very effective for storing towels
and other articles, but they leave the towel rack itself exposed.
The metal or plastic of existing towel racks is visually exposed
even when the towel rack is filled with towels. This is undesirable
for many establishments, especially hospitality establishments
which depend a great deal on aesthetic.
SUMMARY
[0007] The present invention concerns a wall mountable rack or
holding device. The device includes upper and lower connectors and
a continuous beam traveling between the two connectors. The
continuous beam is shaped to form a plurality of non-circular
loops, each loop being substantially parallel to each other and to
the ground. Substantially all of the loops include a rear straight
section. When the rack is mounted to a wall, the rear straight
section is positioned adjacent to a wall.
[0008] Items (e.g. lines, towels) are stored in the space in
between adjacent layers. The items are held in place by gravity and
friction. In a preferred embodiment, the horizontal area of the
items exceeds the area encompassed by the perimeter of a loop.
Accordingly, the item expands and hides the layer of a loop from
view. Thus, the item may appear to be floating against the
wall.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0009] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the present invention
mounted to a wall;
[0010] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the present invention
mounted to a wall holding towels;
[0011] FIG. 3 is a front view of the present invention holding
towels;
[0012] FIG. 4 is a rear view thereof; and
[0013] FIG. 5 is a side view thereof.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0014] The present invention provides a cost effective, visually
appealing and highly sanitary device for storing items (e.g. lines,
towels) on a wall. One main advantage of the device is that it is
hidden when filled with items.
[0015] FIG. 1 shows the preferred embodiment of the towel rack of
the present invention without any items. Rack 100 includes lower
connector 102, upper connector 104 and continuous bar 106.
Continuous bar 106 is constructed from a single elongated bar,
preferably made from aluminum, stainless steal or hard plastic,
Continuous bar 106 is bent to form the shape shown in FIG. 1. This
shape is advantageous for holding items.
[0016] Continuous bar 106 includes a plurality of loops 108. FIG. 1
shows an embodiment including five of loops 108. This embodiment is
purely illustrative and the invention can be constructed with any
number of loops 108 great than one.
[0017] Loops 108 include front 110, rear 112 and body 114. Body 114
is preferably curved as shown in FIG. 1, but can be U-shaped,
V-shaped or any other shape which connects front 110 to rear 112
and is consistent the invention as described below. In one
embodiment, body 114 is a half circle and in another embodiment,
body 114 is a section of the perimeter of a circle.
[0018] Loops 108 are preferably substantially parallel to each
other and substantially parallel to the ground. Loops 108 provides
a stable resting place for each item. FIG. 1, shows loops 108 as
horizontally flat or existing in a single geometric plane. This
construction is preferable, but loop 108 could also have a convex
(or concave) shape where its center is slightly lower (or higher)
than front 110 and rear 112.
[0019] Loops 108 are connected by support bars 116. As illustrated
in FIG. 1, support bars 116 connect front 110 of one loop 108 to
rear 112 of an adjacent loop 108. When lower connector 102 and
upper connector 104 are secured to a wall, all of fronts 110, rears
112 and support bars 116 rest adjacent to or near the wall. Support
bars 116 are preferably straight connections between a rear 112 and
a front 110, but may be curved.
[0020] At the uppermost loop 108, rear 112 connects to upper
connector arm 118, which connects to upper connector 104. At the
lowermost loop, front 110 connects to lower connector arm 120,
which connects to lower connector 102.
[0021] FIG. 2 illustrates the preferred embodiment of the present
invention mounted to a wall and loaded with folded towels 201.
Folded towels 201 have an elastic property such that they will
contract when compressed. Folded towels 201 are preferably large
bath towels that are folded several times to form a shape having a
height slightly taller than the distance between adjacent loops 108
and width and length both surpassing the horizontal area of loop
108. Thus, folded towels 201 are compressed to fit between adjacent
loops 108 and remain in place by both gravity and the friction
caused by their tendency to return to their full volume.
[0022] Although the invention has been described with the above
preferred embodiment, it will be apparent to those of ordinary
skill in the art that modifications and improvements can be made to
the invention herein without departing from the scope of the
invention. The embodiments shown herein are merely for illustrative
of the inventive concepts and should not be construed as limiting
the scope of the invention.
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