US2943741A - Shoe rack - Google Patents

Description

July 5, 1960 T. L. ATKINSON SHOE RACK Filed June 23, 1958 INVENTOR. TRUMAN L. ATKINSON BY@MMM ATTORNEYS United States Patent() 2,943,741 SHOE RACK Truman L. Atkinson, Ludington, Mich., assignor to Atkinson Manufacturing Company, Inc., Ludington,

Mich., a corporation of Michigan Filed June 23, 1958, Ser. No. 743,742

Claims. (Cl. 211-37) This invention relates to shoe racks in general and more particularly to the shoe supports provided on shoe racks.

Shoe'racks include those which are mounted on a wall or the back of a door and those which are free standing. The free standing shoe rack, in particular, is required to have a shoe receiving member or support which will not unbalance the shoe rack when a shoe is received thereon. Generally the free standing rack is provided with separate and parallel rows of shoe supports to more evenly distribute the weight of shoes received on the supports.

It is an object of this invention to disclose a free standing shoe rack of this type which includes a new and improved form of shoe receiving support.

The shoe support of this invention is provided from commonly available material formed to a simple shape. The support is formed from a single piece of wire rod to include an elongated loop. The bight of the loop is formed to receive the toe of a shoe thereover or to have the heel of a shoe placed therein.

The particular form of the disclosed shoe support is that of a commonly known shoe sole and heel. The heel shape of the support is provided by the bight of the elongated wire loop. The wire member is formed to include inbent shoulders at the instep of the shoe sole shape. These shoulders, with the bight, form a partially closed loop which resembles the shape of a heel and which will readily receive the heel of a shoe therein.

The shoe supports of this invention are preferably secured to a cross bar of a shoe rack. They are intended to: be slightly inclined so that a shoe having its heel engaged in the heel receptive part of the shoe support will have its sole supported on the rest of support member. Those shoes which have their toes engaged over the supports will hang free from the end of the support. The supports themselves all lie in a common plane.

Numerous advantages in the use of the disclosed shoe rack with the described shoe supports will be better appreciated after an examination of the specification and the illustrations of a preferred form of this invention, which follows.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a perspective illustration of a shoe rack including the shoe supports of this invention.

Fig. 2 is an end view of the shoe rack shown by Fig. 1 having the toe of a shoe received over the end of one of the supports.

Fig. 3 is an end view of the shoe rack shown by Fig. 1 with the heel of a womans shoe engaged with one of the shoe supports.

The drawing shows a shoe rack particularly intended for womens shoes. The rack includes standards 12 and 14 at each end that provide legs 16 and 18 for the rack. The cross members 20 of the standards 12 2 and 14 include slots 22 that receive the ends of the lateral rack bracing members 24.

The lateral rack members 24 are simple straight wire rod members which have their ends bent back and at right angles to form tongues 26. The tongues 26 are received in the slots 22' of the standards and are snapped into engagement therewith. p

A plurality of shoe supports 30 are mounted on each of the lateral members 24 of the rack 10. Each of the supports 30 is formed to the same shape and each group of supports, on the separate lateral braces 24, lies in a common plane. The supports 30 are each inclined slightly to the vertical at an angle of about twenty to thirty degrees.

The supports 30 are provided from a wire rod similar to that used for the lateral braces 24. The wire is formed into an elongated loop and has its ends spaced apart slightly and secured to the lateral brace 24. The elongated wire loop includes the bight 32 which is disposed uppermost. Thebight 32 of the wire loop is of a size readily received within the toe of a shoe 40, as shown by Fig. 2.

The wire member which forms the supports 30 is further formed to include a pair of inbent shoulder portions 34 and 36 near the bight 32. The shoulders 34 and 36, in combination with the bight 30, give the supports the general shape of a shoe sole and heel. The bight 30 with the shoulders 34 and 36, provides a partially closed loop which forms the heel shape. The rest of the wire member forms the shape of a proportionately undersized shoe sole.

The partially closed loop formed by the bight 30 and shoulders 34 and 36 is readily receptive of the heel of a shoe 40 therein, as shown by Fig. 3. In the present instance, the heel shape is intended to accommodate the heel of a womans high-heeled shoe. However, the form might be varied in size for men's shoes.

The disclosed supports 30 are particularly suited for use with womens high-heeled shoes which have generally smaller sized and tapered heels that are more readily received and engaged in the heel receiving loop of the support.

A shoe 40, having its heel engaged in the support 30, will have the sole of the shoe resting on the inclined part of the shoe support, as shown by Fig. 3.

The disclosed shoe supports 30 are seen to be highly adaptable for supporting shoes either by their toes or their heels. Thus the users of the shoe rack may accommodate both high-heeled or low-heeled shoes on the same rack and may hang the shoes either by their toes or heels.

While a preferred embodiment of this invention has been described, it will be understood that other modifications and improvements may be made thereto. Such of these modifications and improvements as incorporate the principles of this invention are to be considered as included in the hereinafter appended claims unless these claims by their language expressly state otherwise.

I claim:

1. A shoe rack for womens high heeled and other shoes, comprising; the combination of a standard having a plurality of supports provided thereon and each inclined at an angle from a vertical plane, said supports having the uppermost ends thereof formed to receive the toe of a shoe thereover, and shoulders adjacent said uppermost ends cooperating with said uppermost ends to receive the heel of a high heeled shoe therebetween, the inclined face of said support being receptive of the sole of said high heeled shoe in said latter position.

2. A shoe rack, comprising; the combination of a standard having a plurality of separate shoe receiving supports thereon and each disposed at an inclined angle Patented July5, 1960- member formed to include an elongated loop having the bight thereof disposed uppermost, shoulder portions formed from said wire member and within said loop near the bights thereof, said shoulder portions and said bight forming a partially closed wire loop of a size and shape receptive of the heel of a shoe-therein, and said bight being of a size and shape adapted to receive the toe of a shoe thereover, the lower portion of said supports affording support thereon-for the soles of shoes having the heels received in said partially closed wire loops, and free hanging support for shoes having their toes received thereover.

3. In a shoe rack having a support and at least a pair of shoe holders, said shoe holders being a single loop comprising: each of said shoe holders having a body portion and a bight port-ion aligned therewith and joined by generally horizontal shoulders; said shoe holders each projecting upwardly from said standard at a major angle substantially less than 90 and having said bight portion at the upper end thereof; said bight portion having an open center of a size to receive therethrough the heel of a high heel shoe, said shoulders forming a stop for engaging the heel and holding the shoe against downward sliding movement; said bight also being of a size to be received in the toe of a shoe whereby a shoe may be hung therefrom.

4. In a shoe rack having a support and at least a pair of shoe holders, said shoe holders comprising: each of said shoe holders being a single loop having a body portion projecting upwardly from said standard at a major angle substantially less than 90; the 'upper end 4 of said shoe holders being aligned with said body portion and flared laterally in a bight portion open through the center; said bight portion being joined to said body portion by a shoulder portion, said shoulder portion extending inwardly substantially normal to the longitudinal axis of said shoe holder; said open center of said bight portion being of'a' size to receive therethrough the heel of a high heel shoe, said shoulder portion forming a stop for engaging the heel and holding the shoe against downward sliding movement; said bight also being of a size to be received in the toe of a shoe whereby a shoe may be hung therefrom.

5. A shoe rack comprising a standard, andla plurality of shoe supports mounted on said standard and being inclined from a vertical plane at an angle generally less than 45, said shoe supports having an end portion whose outer periphery is of a size and shape to slip into the toe of a shoe, said end portion also defining an opening of a size and shape to engage the heel of a high-heeled shoe inserted therethrough, and a lower portion adjacent said end portion, said lower portion of said shoe supports being of a size .and shape and in a position to support the sole of a shoe when the heel thereof is inserted into said opening.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS D. 157,144 Grindinger Feb. 7, 1950 D. 165,942 Stein Feb. 12, 1952 940,812 Hermann Nov. 23, 1909 1,710,731 Hawkins Apr. 30, 1-929

Images