Supports – Brackets – Specially mounted or attached
Utility Patent
1998-11-30
2001-01-02
King, Anita M. (Department: 3632)
Supports
Brackets
Specially mounted or attached
C052S011000, C248S048200, C248S048100
Utility Patent
active
06168125
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention deals generally with support brackets and more specifically with an adjustable bracket for hanging containers on railings of house decks.
Outdoor decks are common architectural features in present residential construction, and almost every person who owns a home with such a deck wants to place decorative or utilitarian items on the railings of such decks. The most common items hung on the railings are probably flower pots and plant containers. However, virtually all the available mounting devices for such items require attachment to the wood railings or the poles supporting the rails with wood screws. Not only are some homeowners hesitant to drill holes in their deck rails for attaching such mounting devices, but the installation process is more complicated than many people want to deal with. Even those mounting devices which do not require drilling holes into the deck rails or supports are usually either dimensioned for use on a specific size rail, or have a complex system for adjusting the size of a clamp to the size of the rail, with the adjustment feature including loose screws and nuts. It is not an exaggeration to say that while assembling a multiple part clamp held together with loose fasteners, the typical user is bound to drop some of the parts, and usually to lose them underneath the deck.
It would be very beneficial to have available an adjustable bracket for hanging containers on deck railings, with the bracket not requiring any auxiliary hardware to be lost or misplaced.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is an adjustable bracket for hanging containers on the railing of house decks, and the bracket is formed of only two units without any fasteners. The two units interlock, but can be adjusted to form a clamp around the typical rectangular cross section rail.
The bracket is constructed with the two units made of strap material, with some portions of the units having a channel configuration for added strength. The first part is a clamp unit bent into a simple hook shape with one long leg. The second part is a support unit shaped with two near right angle bends to form one upper section and one lower section offset from each other and joined by a short bridge section. The long leg of the hook on the clamp unit and the short offset section of the support unit fit together so that they rest atop the rail while the hook grips under one side of the rail and the bridge section clamps against the other side of the rail.
Several different structures can be used to form the adjustable interlocking structure. The preferred embodiment has a slot with points protruding from its sides in one of the two interlocking parts and a protruding bent finger extending from the second part and into and through the slot. The finger is itself bent sufficiently so that when it rests against a set of points, it is locked in place and prevents the parts from being moved independently. Once such a structure is assembled, the entire bracket is installed by engaging the hook on the lower edge of the rail and forcing the bridge section down over the opposite edge of the rail.
One alternate embodiment of the invention has one part with a channel configuration, and a slot is located along the web of the channel. The mating part has a slightly offset tab on one end, with the tab almost as wide as the channel width and the tab connected to the rest of the structure by a short thin neck. When the tab is turned sideways it can easily be inserted through the mating slot, but when the tabbed part is oriented parallel to the slotted part, the tab is locked between the channel section on either side of the slot and can not be removed. Serrations can also be added on the surface of the slotted part and surface of the tab which contact each other to prevent sliding once the parts are installed on a rail.
Another alternate structure uses a hole in a tab at the end of one part, with the hole sliding over and around the other part to form a collar.
Each of these structures has one feature in common. The two parts are prevented from tilting relative to each other by the interlocking structure. That feature, along with the basic shape of the assembled parts with a hook at one end and a shelf-like protrusion at the other end, permits the bracket to hook under one bottom edge of a deck rail and to support a weight below the diagonally opposite top edge.
The invention thereby supplies a rail attachment bracket which has only two parts, requires no auxiliary hardware, and, nevertheless, is adjustable to various width rails.
REFERENCES:
patent: 1017174 (1912-02-01), Sander et al.
patent: 1755453 (1930-04-01), Mullen
patent: 3544049 (1970-12-01), Brown et al.
patent: 3957240 (1976-05-01), Johansson
patent: 5007240 (1991-04-01), Manfre
patent: 5106046 (1992-04-01), Rowles
patent: 5240214 (1993-08-01), Birnbaum et al.
patent: 5320319 (1994-06-01), Winger et al.
patent: 5779206 (1998-07-01), Harris et al.
patent: 5884876 (1999-03-01), Axford
Epstein Darren C.
Frey Robert A.
Salamh Michael
Winger Timothy M.
Fruitman Martin
King Anita M.
Novelty Manufacturing Co.
Wood Kimberly
LandOfFree
Adjustable railing bracket does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Adjustable railing bracket, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Adjustable railing bracket will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-2457898