1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to hanging devices which may be used in merchandising accessories. More particularly, the present invention relates to hang tags and hangers that may be used in the sale of belts.
2. State of the Art
In the sale of various items, it is common to use hang tags, hangers and other hanging devices. The hang tag allows a piece of merchandise to be attached to a display rack without penetrating the article and reducing the risk that sliding the merchandise back and forth on a post will damage the item. As shown in
One problem with such hang tags 4 is that they often require a knife or scissors to remove the hang tag from the belt 24. This can be inconvenient if the belt is needed promptly (i.e. a businessman or woman who has forgotten their belt and is purchasing one on the way to a meeting).
Another problem is the hang tags 4 may be less convenient for use in other types of belts, such as hole-less belts. In hole-less belts, the belt lacks a prong which extends through holes in the belt. Rather, they rely on some other engagement mechanism for preventing a portion of the belt from being pulled out of the buckle. For example, in one such belt, the buckle includes a ratchet member which is biased into a closed position. The back side of the belt includes a plurality of teeth. As the teeth are slid past the ratchet mechanism, the belt can advance through the buckle to tighten the belt. The belt cannot be pulled back the other direction, however, because of the engagement of the teeth with the ratchet mechanism. Such belts are particularly advantageous because they tend to provide finer adjustment (i.e. every ¼ inch) than a regular belt (i.e. every inch). This makes the belt more comfortable for the wearer and reduced damage to the belt cause by the belt being too tight on the wearer.
Because the buckle lacks an outer buckle loop similar to a conventional buckle, the hang tag 4 shown in
Hole-less belts also create a problem for storage. Many individuals store their belts by placing the hook of a hanger through the void in the buckle and allow the belt to be suspended from the hanger. Numerous belts can be held on such a hanger. In the alternative, a belt is often suspended from a hook on a tie valet. However, neither the hook of the tie valet or the hanger is convenient for holding a hole-belt because of the fundamental difference in the buckle.
Thus, there is a need for an improved hang tag for use with belts and the like. Likewise, there is a need for an improved hanger for storing or displaying belts.
It is an object of the invention to provide an improved hang tag.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an improved hanger for use with hole-less belts. It will be appreciated that the objects are complementary and aspects of the invention can be achieved by providing either a hang tag or a hanger and that the two do not need to be accomplished together.
The above and other objects of the present invention are achieved in a hang tag and or hanger which is configured for attachment to and removal from a piece of merchandise without damaging the merchandise. In accordance with one aspect of the invention, the hang tag or hanger includes a body, at least a portion of which is sized for insertion into a belt buckle. The body engages the belt buckle to selectively hold the hang tag to the belt buckle to thereby allow the belt to be displayed from a display post.
In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the body includes one or more projections extending therefrom. The projections are configured to engage a ratchet mechanism on a belt buckle for a hole-less belt so that the body may be slid into and be retain by the belt buckle and thereby support the weight of the belt.
In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the body includes one or more depressions disposed therein which are configured to engage a ratchet mechanism on a belt buckle for a hole-less belt so that the body may be slid into and retained by the belt buckle and thereby support the weight of the belt. The depression may be formed into the body, may be formed upon formation of the body or may be a hole in the body which receives the ratchet.
In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the portion of the body which is insertable into the belt buckle is thicker than at least one other portion of the hang tag to thereby have a thickness similar to that of the belt.
In accordance with yet another aspect of the invention, hang tag may include a broader upper portion configured to engage a hanging post to hold the belt for display and to provide space for information about the belt to be displayed above the belt buckle.
In accordance with yet another aspect of the invention, a hanger may include one or more bodies having structures thereon for receiving the ratchet of the buckle of a hole-less belt so as to hold the belt for display or for storage. The belt hanger may include a single body for holding one belt, or may hold a plurality of bodies each configured to receive and hold the buckle of a hole-less belt.
These and other aspects of the present invention are realized in a hang tag as shown and described in the following FIGURES and related description.
Various embodiments of the present invention are shown and described in reference to the numbered drawings wherein:
It will be appreciated that the drawings are illustrative and not limiting of the scope of the invention which is defined by the appended claims. The embodiments shown accomplish various aspects and objects of the invention. It is appreciated that it is not possible to clearly show each element and aspect of the invention in a single FIGURE, and as such, multiple FIGURES are presented to separately illustrate the various details of the invention in greater clarity. Similarly, not every embodiment need accomplish all advantages of the present invention.
The invention and accompanying drawings will now be discussed in reference to the numerals provided therein so as to enable one skilled in the art to practice the present invention. The skilled artisan will understand, however, that the methods described below can be practiced without employing these specific details, or that they can be used for purposes other than those described herein. Indeed, they can be modified and can be used in conjunction with products and techniques known to those of skill in the art in light of the present disclosure. The drawings and descriptions are intended to be exemplary of various aspects of the invention and are not intended to narrow the scope of the appended claims. Furthermore, it will be appreciated that the drawings may show aspects of the invention in isolation and the elements in one FIGURE may be used in conjunction with elements shown in other FIGURES.
Reference in the specification to “one embodiment,” “one configuration,” “an embodiment,” or “a configuration” means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment may be included in at least one embodiment, etc. The appearances of the phrase “in one embodiment” in various places may not necessarily limit the inclusion of a particular element of the invention to a single embodiment, rather the element may be included in other or all embodiments discussed herein.
Furthermore, the described features, structures, or characteristics of embodiments of the present disclosure may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments. In the following description, numerous specific details are provided, such as examples of products or manufacturing techniques that may be used, to provide a thorough understanding of embodiments of the invention. One skilled in the relevant art will recognize, however, that embodiments discussed in the disclosure may be practiced without one or more of the specific details, or with other methods, components, materials, and so forth. In other instances, well-known structures, materials, or operations may not be shown or described in detail to avoid obscuring aspects of the invention.
Before the present invention is disclosed and described in detail, it should be understood that the present invention is not limited to any particular structures, process steps, or materials discussed or disclosed herein, but is extended to include equivalents thereof as would be recognized by those of ordinarily skill in the relevant art. More specifically, the invention is defined by the terms set forth in the claims. It should also be understood that terminology contained herein is used for the purpose of describing particular aspects of the invention only and is not intended to limit the invention to the aspects or embodiments shown unless expressly indicated as such. Likewise, the discussion of any particular aspect of the invention is not to be understood as a requirement that such aspect is required to be present apart from an express inclusion of the aspect in the claims.
It should also be noted that, as used in this specification and the appended claims, singular forms such as “a,” “an,” and “the” may include the plural unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Thus, for example, reference to “a spring” may include an embodiment having one or more of such springs, and reference to “the layer” may include reference to one or more of such layers.
As used herein, the term “substantially” refers to the complete or nearly complete extent or degree of an action, characteristic, property, state, structure, item, or result to function as indicated. For example, an object that is “substantially” enclosed would mean that the object is either completely enclosed or nearly completely enclosed. The exact allowable degree of deviation from absolute completeness may in some cases depend on the specific context, such that enclosing the nearly all of the length of a lumen would be substantially enclosed, even if the distal end of the structure enclosing the lumen had a slit or channel formed along a portion thereof. The use of “substantially” is equally applicable when used in a negative connotation to refer to the complete or near complete lack of an action, characteristic, property, state, structure, item, or result. For example, structure which is “substantially free of” a bottom would either completely lack a bottom or so nearly completely lack a bottom that the effect would be effectively the same as if it completely lacked a bottom.
As used herein, the term “about” is used to provide flexibility to a numerical range endpoint by providing that a given value may be “a little above” or “a little below” the endpoint while still accomplishing the function associated with the range.
As used herein, a plurality of items, structural elements, compositional elements, and/or materials may be presented in a common list for convenience. However, these lists should be construed as though each member of the list is individually identified as a separate and unique member.
Turning now to
The body 108 of the hang tag 104 also includes an upper portion 120. The upper portion may have a slot or hole 124 formed therein for receiving a display post of a display rack, etc. to thereby allow the hang tag 104 to hang from the post. The upper portion 120 may be wider and/or longer than the lower portion 112 to facilitate the display of information about the product to which the hang tag 104 is attached. For example, the upper portion 120 may have a brand name 128 and product description 132 displayed thereon to facilitate merchandising of the product.
Referring to
While the hang tags 104 are shown with multiple protrusions or projections, it will be appreciated that a single engagement member may be used to engage the ratchet mechanism of a belt buckle on a hole-less belt.
The hang tag 104 may be made of a variety of materials including plastic, cardboard or other materials which will be strong enough to support the weight of the belt. The hang tag 104 may be injection molded or cut/punched from existing materials. In the alternative, all of part of the hang tag 104 can be made of a portion of a belt having the teeth which are engaged by the ratchet mechanism discussed below so that advancing the buckle on the hang tag 104 gives the appearance of a belt being fastened.
The hang tag 104 may be of a variety of sizes. However, it may be desirable to have the lower portion 112 of the hang tag 104 be of similar thickness to that of the belt with which it is being used. Thus, a common thickness of the lower portion, including the protrusions may be between 1/16th to ¼th of an inch thick.
Turning now to
Turning now to
The hang tag 104 in
Turning now to
While there are minor differences between the hang tags shown in
The hang tags 104 of the present invention provide several advantages. First, they are relatively inexpensive and easy to use. Second, no tools are required in order to insert the hang tag 104 into the belt buckle 158. This may reduce handling. Third, the tags do not require scissors or the like to remove them from the belt 150. This prevents the purchaser from accidentally scratching the belt strap or belt buckle trying to remove the tag.
Turning now to
It will be appreciated that in addition to cardboard, plastic and other materials, the lower portion 112 in
As shown in
The lower portions 112 may be formed in any of the manners discussed above and are designed with one or more engagement members—such as projections 116—to receive and hold a buckle 158 of a belt 150 for display to customers. Thus, for example, a number of different belt colors or styles could be displayed to customers with the belts for sale being boxed and waiting for purchase behind the displays. Such a display would meet the requirements of most “big-box” retailers and would enable customers to see how the belts work—as many people are unfamiliar with hole-less belts.
There is thus disclosed an improved hang tag, hanger and other hanging device for use with hole-less belts. Those skilled in the art will appreciate numerous modifications which may be made in light of the teachings of the present invention. The appended claims are intended to cover such modifications.
Number | Date | Country | |
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61710360 | Oct 2012 | US |