Patent Grant
9532673
This invention relates to articles of manufacture for hanging wetsuits and other garments, such articles being commonly referred to as “hangers”; and more particularly, to a hanger configured for rinsing, drying and storing the wetsuit or other garment.
Many historians believe that President Thomas Jefferson invented the wooden clothes hanger in the late eighteenth century. Since then, a myriad of hanger designs have become commercially available.
With the advent of the wetsuit, sometime in the mid 1950's, came a need for a hanger that was adapted to hold the relatively heavy wetsuit (heavier than typical garments), which can weigh up to about 25 pounds when saturated with water (wet), or sometimes more!
In the last fifty years or so, many wetsuit-specific hangers have become commercially available or otherwise proposed in the art. Early introductions focused on material strength for supporting the weight of a wetsuit. More modernly, however, other hangers have been introduced which suggest solutions to other problems associated with the care of wetsuits.
For example:
Ryan, U.S. Pat. No. 4,949,739, issued Aug. 21, 1990, discloses a “WETSUIT WASHING HANGER DEVICE”; hereinafter referred to as “Ryan”. The hanger disclosed by Ryan does not include a hanger hook but instead includes a bent wire configured to attach with a shower head, whereby the shower head is utilized as a source for water flow introduced into the hanger and directed toward a wetsuit hanging thereon.
Darling, U.S. Pat. No. 4,989,624, issued Feb. 5, 1991, discloses a “WETSUIT WASHER”; hereinafter referred to as “Darling”. The hanger disclosed by Darling includes two parallel cross arms, one arranged above another, a top cross arm is configured to communicate water downwardly spraying through holes therein, whereas the bottom cross arm is configured to hold the wetsuit.
Santos, U.S. Pat. No. 5,037,487, issued Aug. 6, 1991, discloses a “SPRAY HANGER FOR WET SUIT”; hereinafter referred to as “Santos”. The hanger in Santos appears to include a series of PVC type tubing and connectors arranged to form a three dimensional sprinkler system, wherein as best understood a wetsuit is placed on the hanger of Santos and water is communicated to rinse the inside. While the concept of a rinse hanger is communicated in Santos, this disclosed hanger is something that would be home-made. The hanger of Santos is quite rudimentary and cumbersome, and lacks the manufacturability and distribution/shipping capability of a commercially viable product.
Plumley et al., US 2005/0274751, published Dec. 15, 2005, discloses a “WETSUIT RINSING HANGER”; hereinafter referred to as “Plumley”. While Plumley describes a product concept resulting in a hanger that at least conceptually suggests the ability to rinse a wetsuit hanging thereon, the disclosure is not enabling such that a manufacturer might make and use the product. For example, those with skill in the art, upon review of the Plumley disclosure, would question inter alia how the product is molded, what type of plastic molding process, what do the molds look like, what material is used to make the hanger?, etc. As best understood, the product described in Plumley has never been manufactured for the reason that it is either (i) not manufacturable; or (ii) manufacture of the product is cost prohibitive. While Plumley discloses the concept of a wetsuit rinsing hanger, the disclosure is not enabling such that one with skill in the art can make and use the disclosed product. Other problems with the product described in Plumley include: (i) lack of surface area support which results in wetsuit shoulder fatigue and failure; (ii) as disclosed the hanger hook, when pressed into the hanger body, will penetrate the hanger body thereby resulting in product failure, diminished water flow, low pressure at spray holes, etc.
While none of these wetsuit rinsing hangers disclosed in the patent art has experienced commercial success, there are a handful of wetsuit hangers that currently represent the bulk of mainstream wetsuit hanger sales. Accordingly, those hangers defining the current state of the art include:
McJunkin, US 2006/0226177, published Oct. 12, 2006, discloses a “WETSUIT HANGER DRYER”; hereinafter referred to as “McJunkin”. McJunkin discloses a hanger that includes a fan built inside of the hanger and adapted to generate a flow of air for circulation within the volume of the wetsuit hanging thereon such that the wetsuit might dry faster.
Watson, U.S. Pat. No. 8,875,961, issued Nov. 4, 2014, discloses a “WETSUIT HANGER”; hereinafter referred to as “Watson”. The hanger system disclosed in Watson is merely a pair of bent bars attached to a wall, the bars can be individually adjusted to extend outwardly or downwardly from the wall, wherein a wetsuit can be folded over the hanger bars and stored for drying.
Finally, while not known to be in the patent art, probably the most common wetsuit hanger of the current commercially available hangers is the HangPro™ “SlideHanger”, which can be further reviewed online at: http://www.thehangpro.com/slidehangeraspx. The SlideHanger is a monolithic one-piece molded hanger body having a hook and an arm extending from the hook and bent about a one hundred eighty degree bend, wherein a wetsuit is folded at or near the waist and slid over the bent arm of the SlideHanger. Those having skill in the art would likely agree that the SlideHanger is the current state of the art in commercially available wetsuit hangers.
However, at least O'Neill wetsuits, currently one of the largest wetsuit manufacturers in the World, and XTERRA wetsuits, in their respective instruction guides for wetsuit care, each suggests that a wetsuit should not be folded on a hanger or otherwise. Thus, while the SlideHanger may be the commercial state of the art, there is a long felt and continued need for an improved wetsuit hanger.
While the above discussion is centered on wetsuits, such as those worn by surfers, divers, triathletes, and other active aquatic activity participants, the contents and discussion of this document can be similarly applied to other garments which might benefit from a structural support and rinse capability in a hanger. Such related problems and other applications will be easily recognized by those having skill in the art of sporting garments and active wear. Therefore, the discussion of the background art is not intended to be used to limit the scope of the herein-described invention.
There is a long felt and continued need for an improved wetsuit hanger that is configured to address at least the following problems:
(i) it is cumbersome to rinse or wash a wetsuit using conventional practices (dipping in bucket, repeated spraying and reconfiguring the wetsuit inside out, etc.);
(ii) storing a wetsuit on a hanger which lacks sufficient surface area leads to premature wetsuit wear and failure;
(iii) hangers must be rigid enough to withstand the weight of up to about 25 pounds in order to be useful for wetsuits;
(iv) hangers for wetsuits must be capable of cost-effective manufacture and distribution/transportation;
(v) hangers without swivel hooks are not ideal for the reason that rotation on the hanger is a desirable feature, especially while rinsing the wetsuit, however, swivel hooks are generally pressed into a hanger body thereby having a propensity to puncture a hollow molded hanger body such as a rinse hanger; and
(vi) an ideal hanger will be useful to wash or rinse a wetsuit, hang the wetsuit for drying, and further hang the wetsuit for storage, without cumbersome operation and unnecessary fatigue/stress on the wetsuit fabric.
The disclosure concerns a wetsuit rinse hanger having a swivel hanger hook, a broad surface area for distributing the weight of the wetsuit, a hollow hanger body designed to communicate water through holes for rinsing the inside of the wetsuit, and an adapter for quick connection of a water hose connector for providing a source of water flow through the rinse hanger.
Using the rinse hanger disclosed herein, a wearer would remove the wetsuit and hang on the rinse hanger, then place the hanger on the end of an open garage door or other stationary object. A garden hose with a female quick connector attached therewith is then attached to the male adapter of the rinse hanger. The female quick connector preferably includes an auto-stop mechanism such that when removed, the water flow through the female connector is automatically stopped. After a minute or so of rinsing the inside portion of the wetsuit, the female quick connector is removed from the hanger, as mentioned the flow of water is preferably then stopped, and a standard garden hose sprayer (or “spray nozzle”) with male adapter is then coupled with the female quick connector, wherein the garden hose sprayer is now used to rinse the outside of the wetsuit. Being rinsed both inside and out, the rinse hanger and wetsuit hanging thereon can be placed for drying and storage. Using the rinse hanger disclosed herein, rinsing or washing a wetsuit is simple, fast and efficient. Moreover, drying and storing the wetsuit on the hanger is improved by the broad surface area of the shoulder portions of the rinse hanger. While the hanger body is hollow, it has a wall thickness sufficient to hang fifty pounds or more.
A distinguishing feature of the disclosed rinse hanger is the swivel hook assembly. The rinse hanger includes a threaded cap with an aperture disposed through an axial center of the cap. The hanger hook includes a flanged bottom end and an optional washer is provided to displace weight about the hook and cap assembly. The hanger body further includes a threaded portion configured to receive the threaded cap, wherein an annular cap seal is included therebetween and used to form a friction seal between the threaded cap and the threaded portion of the hanger body. In this regard, the swivel hook is attached external to the hanger body and introduces no propensity to puncture therethrough.
Another distinguishing feature is a channel extending through the threaded portion of the hanger body of the rinse hanger. The channel provides a recessed volume for the flanged end of the hook to protrude and nest into while not puncturing or wearing against the hanger body.
Another distinguishing feature of the rinse hanger is the filleted neck portion of the hanger body and the longitudinal grooves. Due to the relatively heavy weight associated with a wetsuit, especially when wet, most plastic hanger bodies deform or otherwise lack the structural capability to support the heavy wetsuit. The filleted neck portion and longitudinal grooves of the disclosed rinse hanger have been shown to distribute stress caused by the weight of a wetsuit for providing improved rigidity and stability of the hanger body.
Yet another distinguishing feature of the disclosed rinse hanger is the symmetric plane extending along the length of the hanger body provides an ability to mold the hanger from plastic material. In particular, the hanger can be injection molded, or more preferably, rotation molded (blow molded). Note that the male adapter extends in the longitudinal plane forming a symmetry along the longitudinal axis of the rinse hanger. This symmetry provides the ability to mold the hanger body for low cost and efficient manufacturing.
These and other features and solutions will be further understood upon a review of the following detailed description of embodiments.
The disclosed rinse hanger includes a hook and cap assembly that is capable of attaching to the rinse hanger for providing a swivel hook which does not protrude into the hanger body itself. Instead, the hook and cap assembly, combined with the threaded portion of the hanger, provide a mechanism for promoting swivel hook function while not puncturing into the hanger body itself. The effect of the resulting swivel hook is advantageous because when spraying the outside of the hanging wetsuit with a garden hose spray nozzle it is advantageous to rotate the hanging wetsuit thereby improving the ergonomics and efficiency of the wetsuit rinsing process.
Moreover, the channel disposed in the threaded portion of the hanger body provides a volume for receiving the flanged portion of the hanger hook such that the hanger hook does not drill into or otherwise penetrate into the hanger body.
The resulting hanger body is symmetrical and capable of plastics manufacturing, in particular injection molding, or more preferably using a rotational molding process. When injection molded, the hanger body is molded in two pieces bisected along the longitudinal plane, then using a solvent bond the two pieces are bonded together. Alternatively, the hanger body is rotational molded as a monolithic piece and the male adaptor aperture and hanger body spray holes are subsequently drilled or otherwise removed. The result is low-cost and efficient manufacturability of the disclosed hanger body.
The broad shoulder surface area displaces the wetsuit shoulders for reducing stress on the wetsuit material and providing longevity and improved storage.
For purposes of explanation and not limitation, details and descriptions of certain preferred embodiments are hereinafter provided such that one having ordinary skill in the art may be enabled to make and use the invention. These details and descriptions are representative only of certain preferred embodiments, however, and a myriad of other embodiments which will not be expressly described will be readily obvious to those of skill in the art upon a thorough review hereof. Accordingly, any reviewer of the instant disclosure should interpret the scope of the invention by the claims, and such scope shall not be limited by the embodiments disclosed herein.
Now turning to the drawings,
The rinse hanger is configured such that a user may hang a wetsuit on the rinse hanger; hang the hook of the rinse hanger about an structural object (for example the end of an open garage door), connect a female quick connector and garden hose to the male adapter of the hanger body such that water from the garden hose is communicated into the hanger body through the male adapter and further communicated through the holes of the hanger body creating a spray function for rinsing an internal surface of the hanging wetsuit. After about a minute or so, the user may then disconnect the female quick connector from the hanger body, attach a standard sprayer or spray nozzle to the female quick connector and proceed to rinse the exterior surface of the wetsuit. Subsequent to rinsing the inside and outside of the wetsuit, the wetsuit is left to hang on the hanger for an air drying, and further hung for long term storage.
An O-ring 110 is attached to the male adapter for providing a seal with a female quick release connector when coupled therewith.
In a preferred method of utilization, the wearer can configure the wetsuit inside-out prior to hanging on the rinse hanger. In this regard, the rinse hanger is then configured to rinse the outside of the wetsuit (though configured on the inside surface). After a minute or so of rinsing, the quick connector is detached from the hanger and a spray nozzle is coupled. The spray nozzle is used to rinse the inside of the wetsuit (here configured on the outside since the wetsuit is inside-out).
Other features, embodiments and other variations of the above disclosure will be readily identifiable by those having skill in the art. While the instant disclosure provides detailed descriptions, such descriptions are not intended to limit the spirit and scope of the invention. Rather, the inventive scope shall only be determined through the claims as appended hereto.
The rinse hanger is used to hang, rinse, dry and store a wetsuit or similar garment.
| Number | Name | Date | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1984631 | Coss | Dec 1934 | A |
| 4221298 | Wright | Sep 1980 | A |
| 4592497 | Georges | Jun 1986 | A |
| 4949739 | Ryan | Aug 1990 | A |
| 4989624 | Darling | Feb 1991 | A |
| 4997000 | Feast | Mar 1991 | A |
| 5037487 | Santos | Aug 1991 | A |
| 5503311 | Chen | Apr 1996 | A |
| 5941429 | Koons | Aug 1999 | A |
| 8789729 | Beckett | Jul 2014 | B2 |
| 8875961 | Watson | Nov 2014 | B1 |
| 20050274751 | Plumley | Dec 2005 | A1 |
| 20060226177 | McJunkin | Oct 2006 | A1 |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20160066730 A1 | Mar 2016 | US |
