US2965981A - Fabric display dummy having a figure partly connected to a surrounding frame - Google Patents

Description

Dec. 27, 1960 G. GIOVETTI 2,965,981

FABRIC DISPLAY DUMMY HAVING A FIGURE PARTLY CONNECTED TO A SURROUNDING FRAME Filed April 9, 1957 United States atent 2,965,981 FABRIC DISPLAY DUMll/IY HAVING A FIGURE PARTLY CONNECTED TO A SURROUNDING 5 FRAME Giuliano Giovetti, Spilamberto, Italy Dr. G. Modiano, Via Meravigli 16, Milan, Italy) Filed Apr. 9, 1957, Ser. No. 651,781

Claims priority, application Italy Apr. 9, 1956 1 Claim. (Cl. 35-56) and expensive materials, and well known too are the dif- 2O ficulties and troubles of their dressing up due chiefly to the fact that it takes special contrivances to hold and adapt the fabric to the body of the dummy, in accordance to some prearranged and/or desired pleasing appearance.

Well known are also the dummies made out of patterns cut out of stiff paper board, generally not raised in relief, that once dressed up are displayed leaning against or somehow held up in store windows, for the effective display of the fabrics. However, these are cumbersome to dress up, without coming up to the required pleasing effects of a proper and esthetic presentation attained only with carved or molded dummies, which are substantially self-supporting.

Besides the disadvantages due to the toilsome dressing and draping of the mannequins, and of the necessity of having to resort to pins and other means of fastening to keep the fabric properly arranged in place, the conventional dummies are handicapped by other disadvantages due to the problem of their unsteadiness in the store windows which requires the use of a base or other means of support, often at considerable expenses.

An object of this invention is to eliminate all of these inconveniences and drawbacks by creating a dummy that can be draped and dressed easily, without having to resort to auxiliary means of fastening, like pins or the like,

unless some uncommon effects of draping have to be attained in the fabric to be displayed for sale.

Another object of this invention is to provide a dummy as described above, which could be self-supporting, in

order to stand up by itself, on account of an incorporated 5Q steadying fixture which would allow the mannequin to stand up or easily to receive support in show windows or elsewhere.

A further object of this invention is to obtain a dummy which could be fabricated by a simple manufacturing process, one that would not require the design and adoption of intricate parts, and instead would be amenable to adaptation to many practicable aspects, as for example the human person: man, woman, babies, young people,

or other beings living or fantastic, such as the fashion suggests or for which a need arises.

Another object of this invention is to provide a dummy whose various parts could be draped with sundry pieces of the same fabric, or else with different cloth altogether,

without it being necessary to have to out the cloth away from the bolt of dry goods in order to do the draping, and wherein moreover the bolt of cloth could be hidden away behind the mannequin itself, or better yet the bolt of cloth could be left visible beside the dummy, so as to bring forth as an associate idea what is the real object of the display.

Another object of this invention is to provide a dummy,

of the type so far described, with a pattern wherein the framing panel mounting, cast integral with the dummy, could be readily modified to enhance the appearance of the whole, and/or be possibly utilized to show written words or other graphic indications found convenient for display purposes.

All of these and other objects are obtained by the invention, which is characterized in that it includes a figure to be dressed up or draped, at least partly made of pliable and elastic material, held in a correspondingly apertured space of a frame mounting contour, the figure being partially detached from the mounting by means of cuttings all along the edge of its outline, except for small portions of its marginal rim.

There will now be given a more descriptive illustration of this invention, reference being taken to the accompanying drawing, which is intended to be only for indicative purpose and not in any way limitative:

Fig. 1 shows in perspective view a panel according to this invention, on which is mounted a dummy that is intended to portray a ladys figure; t

Fig. 2 shows on perspective side view the same dummy, but with the form partially flexed, so as to allow for the easy dressing of the figure itself;

Fig. 3 shows the same dummy during draping and dressing with the cloth of the bolt of goods standing on the floor beside the flame mounting; and

Fig. 4 shows the perspective back view of the mounting frame fitted with a different dummy, one depicting a mans body.

Considering Figs. 1 to 3, the dummy consists of a form generally marked 1, in the shape ofa woman, of which the outline is partially cut out of a panel, generally marked 2,.some parts of the outline remaining attached to the panel. On observing the drawing, it can be noticed that part of the tracing that outlines the womans shape in Fig. 1, is shown by a full line 3 andrepresents those parts of the dummy that are integral with panel 2, while those parts of the outline which are shown in the-same Fig. 1 with double lines 4 represent the cut-away parts of the dummys shape, inside the surrounding frame 2. Fig. 1 shows clearly the parts in question as being those which are located above the wrists, at ankles height in the legs, and also all around the head down toward the neck.

In conformity with this invention, the frame 2 is apertured, as at 4, along the outline of the dummy, and more particularly all along the traces shown double-lined in the drawing and marked 4. 'In this slit the fabric is drawn across over the body of the dummy, to dress it up in its best advantage. Likewise, other slits can be cut out in the dummys body, in correspondence with the wrists, with the upper part of the chest, etc., as shown at 5, 6 in the drawing; and at 5' when the auxiliary slits (always out in cross direction with respect to the main slits marked 4) are needed to drape the arms only partway down. It will be found practical to mold the dummy and the frame at the same time from a single piece of material, all the slits 4 being cut by the same dies at the time of the first punching or successively the dummy 1 cast in most cases in a contrasting color to the frame 2, generally of a flesh tint.

Another feature, not essential but advantageous, of this invention is given by the possibility of embossing in relief the body of the dummy, with the shapes corresponding to the human figure, or some nicely molded imitation.

Considering now Fig. 4, it will be noticed that the same reference numbers point out the parts having identical functions elsewhere but that, to avoid confusion, an a has been added to these numbers. It will thus be seen that the dummy is identified by the blank 1a, cut in the shape of a man, in the panel marked 2a, along the slits 4a, the blank remaining integral with the panel along the lines marked 3a, i.e. at the hands, the feet and the head of the figure. Likewise, auxiliary slits can be provided along the lines marked a, separating the arms from the bust. The structure defined above points up another advantageous feature of this invention, i.e. the fact that generally the hand and feet do not have to be draped or dressed with cloth and therefore may be left integral with frame-mounting panel 2.

Referring now to Figs. 2 and 3, it can be imagined that the draping or dressing up of the dummy is to be accomplished by taking advantage of the elasticity of its material (or part of it), by flexing the form out of the frame mounting 2, along its connection to the frame 2 as shown in Fig. 2, then draping the fabric around it as needed. By releasing the pressure used in bending out of place the dummys form, after the draping has been done, the dummy will return to its original position in the frame, as shown in Fig. 1, flush with the edge of panel 2; and the fabric used in the draping will be clamped in the edges of the slits 4 and held tight around the outline of the dummy, now sprung back into the panel 2 to its original position.

The auxiliary slits marked 5 and 6 can be put to use at the time when it is wanted to drape the arms or legs of the dummy with sleeves or pants of a fabric different from the one that is being used to dress the body of the dummy or to match color and stripes properly, when the latter have to be oriented in a certain way, as in the sleeves of a mans suit of clothes. The auxiliary slits, adjusted to be cut wherever they are needed on the figure, permit the draping of a the dummy with long or short sleeves, or else with various heights of low-cut in the neck of the womans gown, at the time when the draping of the dummy is being done, as shown in Figs. 1 and 3 (the dummy in this case representing the shape of a womans body).

As explained above, the fabric becomes tightly held, i.e. clamped, in the slits between the frame mounting and the blank of the dummy, following its most varied contour, without recourse to pins or other means of fastening, the tightness in the slits will be suflicient for all purposes.

At times it will be found convenient not to have the dummy made in full figure of the human body; the form could then accordingly depict only part of the bust of such body. The form could likewise show figures of babies or other living beings, also figures of beings entirely imaginary and purely fantastic.

Although the preferred embodiments of the invention have been herein described, various modifications and substitutions may be effected without departing from the underlying inventive concept. It is not intended, therefore, to be limited to the specific disclosure contained herein, and hereby the right is reserved to all such modifications and substitutions as properly come within the scope of the appended claim.

I claim:

A dummy dressed up with fabrics for display, comprising an integral plate of resilient material provided with slits and constituting several cantilever portions in sculptural convex relief simulating a human figure to be clothed, said slits extending along nearly the entire outline of said sculptural relief and defining on said plate a framing complementary to said cantilever portions, each of said cantilever portions being integrally connected at one end with said framing, one of said cantilever portions constituting the major part of the human figure with one of said slits being V-shaped and extending into said one of said cantilever portions, thereby defining a pair of legs on said figure, and other cantilever portions constituting complementary parts of the human figure, said portions being adapted to be bent rearwardly from said framing and, when dressed with a fabric, to be swung back to their rest positions wherein said framing and said portions grip said fabric substantially in the plane of said framing.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Re. 14,178 McCarrell Aug. 1, 1916 1,273,945 Sooy July 30, 1918 1,519,934 Ross Dec. 16, 1924

Images