Patent Application
20150176898
The present invention relates to a drying rack and, more particularly, to an adjustable drying rack mounted within a frame for hanging on a wall or surface.
Drying racks are well known and used extensively for drying laundry and other type of Items. In addition, there are in the prior art drying racks that are mounted within a frame for hanging on a wall or surface. The drying rack is secured to the frame by straps allowing the drying rack to extend out to a first extension position from the frame and can be positioned vertically within the frame for storage. One major problem with this prior art drying rack is that the rack only extends to a single position from the frame. In many circumstances and households, having multiple positions for the rack is important for drying purposes, space concerns in the household, and convenience. As such the main aspect of the present invention is to provide a solution to these disadvantages in the prior art.
The present invention is directed to a drying rack assembly. The assembly includes a frame support structure defined by top and bottom frame supports, a pair of side frame supports positioned between the top and bottom frame supports and along ends of the top and bottom frame supports to define a window therebetween. A drying support structure is provided and mounted in the window, the drying support structure is defined by having top and bottom rack supports, a pair of side rack supports positioned between the top and bottom rack supports and along ends of the top and bottom rack supports, and further having a plurality of rods positioned and secured between the side rack supports. At least one strap is secured at one end to a top portion of the drying support structure and is further secured at another end to a top portion of the frame support structure. Positioned along each of the side frame supports is a slot that includes at least a top resting position and a bottom resting position. In addition, a pole is provided with ends separately positioned within the slots and wherein the strap extends behind the pole such that when the pole is moved into either the top resting position or the bottom resting position, the at least one strap configures the drying support structure into a full extension position or a partial extension position from the frame support structure.
In other aspects of the invention, the frame support structure further includes a back support secured about one side of the top, bottom, and side supports. In this instance, each strap is secured at one end to a top portion of the back support of the frame support structure.
In yet other aspects of the invention, the drying support structure is pivotally mounted within the window by brackets positioned between the bottom support and bottom rack support. And in yet other aspects of the invention, each slot has an elongated portion extending along a portion of the side frame support, the elongated portion having a bottom and a top, and the bottom resting position is defined along the bottom as having a bottom perpendicular portion and then a bottom downward portion, and the top resting position is defined along the top as having a top perpendicular portion and then a top downward portion.
For a fuller understanding of the nature of the present invention, reference should be made to the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:
Referring to the several views of the drawings, the framed drying rack of the present invention is shown and is generally indicated as 10.
With initial reference to
The drying rack 40 is mounted within a window 30 defined by the supporting frame structure 20. The drying rack 40 similarly includes a rack support structure 42 defined by having top and bottom rack supports, 44 and 46 respectively, and further having side rack supports 48. A plurality of rods 50 are positioned and secured between the side rack supports 48. The rods 50 provide a means for holding or hanging items thereon for drying.
The drying rack 40 is pivotally mounted within the window to the supporting frame structure 20 by one or more pivot brackets 32. This permits the drying rack 40 from pivoting into and away from the window 30. A pair of straps 34 is secured at one end to a top portion of the drying rack 40, which could include securing the end 36 of the straps to the top rack support 44. The other end 38 of the straps 34 is secured to a top portion of the supporting frame structure 20, which may include securing the end 38 of the straps to the top support 22 or an upper section of the back support 29. As such, when the drying rack 40 is pivoted away from the supporting frame structure 20 the straps extend and the length of the straps determines the distance the drying rack will extend.
The improvement in the current invention is defined by further providing a means to adjust 60 the straps 34 to different lengths and thereby allowing drying rack to extend to two or more extension positions. The adjusting means is defined by having the straps extend behind a pole 62 that is secured at its ends to the side supports 26. The ends 64 of the pole 62 rest in slots 66 defined on each of the side supports 26. The slots 66 include a top resting position 68 and a bottom resting position 70 that the pole 62 can slide into and rest. Other positioned can be included if desired. When the pole 62 is positioned at the top resting position the straps can be fully extended and the drying rack can be positioned in a fully extending position (
In one embodiment of the invention, each slots 66 has an elongated portion 80 extending along a portion of the side support 26. At the bottom of the elongated portion 80, the slot then travels to a bottom perpendicular portion 82 and then travels into a bottom downward portion 84. The bottom perpendicular portion 82 and the bottom downward portion 84 help to define the bottom resting position (as shown in
Lastly, the pole 62 may include ends with a spring engaging pin to help position and glide the ends of the pole 62 in the slots.
When assembled the drying rack can be easily hung or secured to a wall of surface.
While the instant invention has been shown and described in accordance with a preferred and practical embodiment thereof, it is recognized that departures from the instant disclosure are contemplated within the spirit and scope of the present invention.
