Illumination – Plural light sources – With support
Reexamination Certificate
2000-04-26
2001-09-18
Husar, Stephen (Department: 2875)
Illumination
Plural light sources
With support
C362S396000, C248S071000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06290372
ABSTRACT:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
Not applicable.
STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY APPROVED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT
Not applicable.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to Christmas light string mounting devices, and helically coiled spring connectors of the type that serve as a quickly attachable and detachable solderless electrical connector.
2. Background Art
Various brackets and other structures have been devised for attaching Christmas light strings to interior and exterior surfaces of buildings. Exemplary of these are the Christmas light hangers of Mayse, U.S. Pat. No. 4,714,219; the light string mounting bracket of Lanning, U.S. Pat. No. 5,624,180; and the device for permanent installation of Christmas lighting of Shaffer, U.S. Pat. No. 5,813,751. A disadvantage of such devices is that, once the Christmas season is past, they are not readily adaptable for hanging or supporting objects other than Christmas light strings, such as Halloween decorations, mobiles and other types of hanging sculptures and decorations. What is desired, therefore, is a device, mountable on a wall surface and capable of supporting a Christmas light string, by which various kinds of objects can be supported directly (e.g., bunting) or suspended by a cord or string from the wall by attaching the cord or string to the device; and, further, that the device be configured such that the cord, string (including, for instance, a Christmas light string) or other object can be quickly and easily attached and disattached from the device.
I have found that these needs are well served by a helical coil, comprised of flexible, resilient wire, in combination with an appropriate fastener, such as a nail or screw, for attaching the coil to a wall surface. A number of these coils, spaced apart along a wall surface and fastened thereto, can readily support a Christmas light string that is wedged in between, and retained by, adjacent turns within each of the coils. Removal of the light string is accomplished simply by separating the adjacent turns of each coil enough to permit withdrawal of the light string. Similarly, a cord or string for suspending an object from the coil is easily attached to, and disattached from, such a wall-mounted coil in the same manner.
Helical coils have been used previously for securing cords, wires, and the like. Brinkerhoff, U.S. Pat. No. 412,583, disclosed a picture nail comprising a helical coil of wire or other suitable material that surrounded the shank of a nail closely at its ends and was of larger diameter between said ends. A cord for suspending a picture frame could be retained between adjacent turns of the coil. Due to the presence of the coil, the nail could only be driven partially into a wall surface. Driving the nail into a wall surface tended to compress the coil, which may be acceptable when hanging a picture frame but, for hanging a Christmas light string, is deemed undesirable inasmuch as electric wires in the light string might be damaged by excessive compressive force between adjacent turns of the coil. Moreover, the presence of the portion of the nail that extended away from the wall surface interfered with separation of adjacent turns when removing the cord.
Johns, U.S. Pat. No. 3,210,722, disclosed a helical spring type connector, comprising an upper portion of approximately polygonal convolutions and a lower portion formed of circular convolutions of decreasing diameters, the latter convolutions being adapted for insertion in a recess in a plate or foundation. An electrical conductor could be clamped between adjacent convolutions of the upper portion. No separate fastener, such as a nail or screw, was provided or required, but a recess was required in the surface to which the fastener was to be attached. Having to drill a series of such recesses on interior or exterior wall surfaces would be laborious and likely to mar said surfaces, thereby making Johns' connector unsuitable for the intended range of applications of the instant invention.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to the present invention, there is provided a holder for mounting a Christmas light string on an exterior or interior surface of a building or structure. The holder includes a nail having a first, reduced end, and a second, opposite end that terminates in an enlarged head; and a flexible, resilient wire having a first end that is attached to the nail. The wire comprises a plurality of helical turns of progressively increasing radius with increasing axial distance from said nail head. To attach the holder to a surface, the reduced end of the nail is placed on the surface, force is applied to radially displace the wire and thereby expose the nail head long enough to permit hammering the nail into the surface. Thereafter, the force is terminated and the wire, due to its resilience, springs back into a position overlying the nail head. Accordingly, to mount a Christmas light string, holders of the type described are attached at desired intervals to said surface, and portions of the Christmas light string are wedged between, and retained by, adjacent helical turns of each of the holders. Removal of the Christmas light string is just as easy: the adjacent turns of each holder wherein the light string is wedged are separated and the light string lifted away. Optionally, the holder further includes a cap with a hollow recess for placement on the nail head to improve its appearance. The holder may also be used for attaching other types of objects to a wall surface, either by inserting the object itself between adjacent turns of wire or by suspending the object from a cord or string that is wedged between adjacent turns of wire.
Further according to the invention, a method is provided for attaching a Christmas light string to a surface. The method includes the steps of grasping a nail having a first, reduced end and a second, opposite end that terminates in an enlarged nail head; inserting the nail, reduced end first, all the way up to the nail head, through a first, smallest radius turn of a flexible, resilient, helical wire that comprises a plurality of progressively increasing radius with increasing axial extent; placing the reduced end of the nail on the surface; grasping and displacing the helical wire to expose the nail head; hammering the nail into the surface; releasing the helical wire to permit it to resume a position overlying and extending axially away from the nail head; inserting a selected portion of a Christmas light string between adjacent turns of the helical wire, whereby that portion is retained by the adjacent turns; and, for each successive portion of the light string, repeating the foregoing steps. As an alternative way to fasten the helical wires to the surface, screws can be substituted for nails and the screws driven into the surface with a screwdriver in lieu of hammering nails into the surface. For exterior applications, the fasteners should be rust resistant—galvanized or stainless steel, for instance.
REFERENCES:
patent: 90998 (1869-06-01), Heureuse
patent: 358268 (1887-02-01), Hoffstatter
patent: 412593 (1889-10-01), Brinkerhoff
patent: 729770 (1903-06-01), Jenkins
patent: 1097443 (1914-05-01), Kalat
patent: 3210722 (1965-10-01), Johns
patent: 4714219 (1987-12-01), Mayse
patent: 5624180 (1997-04-01), Lanning
patent: 5669709 (1997-09-01), Adams
patent: 5813751 (1998-09-01), Shaffer
patent: 6070837 (2000-06-01), Bond
Coyne Brian J.
Husar Stephen
LandOfFree
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