US3003644A - Bottle rack - Google Patents

Description

Oct. 10, 1961 o. w. HILDEBRANDBOTTLE RACK 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed July 25, 1960 FIG! INVENTOR.

OLIVER W. HILDEBBAND BY @aJfk w. flu.

ATTORNEY Oct. 10, 1961 o. w. HILDEBRAND 3,003,644

BOTTLE RACK Filed July 25, 1960 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

OLIVER W. HI LDEBRAND ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,003,644 BOTILE RACK Oliver W. Hildebrand, Jennings, Mo., assignor to Wirecraft Manufacturing Company, St.-Lonis, Mo., a corporation of Missouri Filed July 25, 1960, Ser. No. 45,107

SClaims. (Cl. 211-7 4) This invention relates in general to article containers and, more particularly, to a bottle rack adapted for collapsing during disuse.

It is a primary object of the present invention to provide a bottle rack which incorporates novel means for preventing bottles received therein from inadvertent displacement with resultant breakage or loss.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a bottle rack adapted for collapsing during periods of disuse so that the same may be condensed into a relatively fiat, compact unit requiring minimum storage space; and which may be easily operated for movement into and from operative and collapsed conditions.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a bottle rack which is of sturdy, light-weight construction, being durable and reliable in usage; which may be most economically manufactured; and which may be adapted for either support directly upon a wall surface, such as the side of a soft drink vending machine, or upon an independent easel or other type support. Other objects and details of the invention will be apparent from the following description, when read in connection with the accompanying drawings (two sheets) wherein-'- FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a bottle rack constructed in accordance with and embodying the present invention showing the same in operative position.

FIGURE 2 is a side elevational view of the rack in operative condition and showing the same in phantom lines in collapsed condition.

FIGURE 3 is a top view.

FIGURE 4 is a horizontal transverse section taken on the line 44 of FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 5 is a vertical side view taken along the line 55 of FIGURE 4.

FIGURE 6 is a fragmentary enlarged elevational view of a mounting bracket for the rack.

Referring now by reference characters to the drawings which illustrate the preferred embodiment of the present invention, A generally designates a bottle rack comprised of a front ormovable section 1 and a back orstationary section 2, each of which is preferably of rectangular configuration having aframe 3, 4, respectively, fabricated of suitable rod stock with a plurality of vertically spaced apartcross wires 5, 6, respectively, and a plurality of horizontally spaced-apartlongitudinal wires 7, 8, respectively; saidwires 5, 7 and 6, 8 being mutually secured at their points of intersection and to therelated frames 3, 4, as by welding. Eachsection 1, 2 is thus of relatively light weight and having an open, lattice-or grid-type character. The cross andlongitudinal wires 5, 7 offront section 1 are so arranged as to present a plurality ofquadilateral openings 9 dimensioned for reception of a conventional beverage bottle, as used for soft drinks, and the like, and indicated in phantom lines at b in FIGURE 2. The intersectingwires 6, 8 ofback section 2 may be arranged in a similar manner asfront section 1, together with a plurality of additional, closely spaced cross wires 6' for reinforcement as well as for support ofbrackets 10 having abayonet slot 11 for receivingmounting screws 12, or the like, whereby rack A may be easily suspended on a wall surface, such as the side of a customary soft drink vending machine, or upon ice suitable mounting members (not shown) of an easel-type of support.

The saidsections 1, 2 are disposed in planar-parallel relationship and are interengaged by a plurality of connectingarms 13, as located at the corners ofsaid sections 1, 2 and intermediate the upper and lower ends thereof. Said connectingarms 13 are constituted of short lengths of rod stock looped, as at 13', at their opposite ends for disposition about the adjacent frame portions ofsaid sections 1, 2 to permit relative rotative movement for purposes presently appearing. Also interconnecting front andback sections 1, 2 is a pair ofside pivot arms 14, 14' made desirably of flat stock and each havingopenings 15 at their opposite ends for receiving hook-formingextensions 16 of theproximate cross wires 5, 6.

Thus, by means of connectingarms 13 andpivot arms 14, 14',front section 1 may be swung toward and away fromback section 2, while being maintained in planar parallel relationship (see FIGURE 2) for movement into extended or operative position and into collapsed or inoperative state.

In order to prevent unrestricted relative movement ofsections 1, 2 and to present same in mutually offset relation whereinfront section 1 will be disposed upwardly slightly ofback section 2, there are provided a pair of detents or restrainingarms 17, 17' on either side of rack A, each being formed preferably of rod stock and having closedloops 18, 18 at their normally upper and lower ends respectively. Theupper loop 18 of eachrestraining arm 17, 17 is engaged about the side portion offrame 4 ofback section 2 and the adjacent portion of the associatedpivot arm 14, 14, as the case may be; while the lower loop 18' of eachpivot arm 17, 17 is loosely engaged about the side portion offrame 3 offront section 1 and beneath the jointure of the same with the adjacent cross wire 5 (see FIGURE 5) at a point downwardly of the connection of the relatedupper loop 18 toframe 4 so that restrainingarms 17, 17' are normally disposed in outwardly and downwardly inclined attitude. It will be seen that restrainingarms 17, 17' are so positioned with respect to front andback sections 1, 2 that the same are prevented from being swung into and through fully aligned relationship. With rack A in extended or operative position, the lower loops 18' will be brought into abutment against the under portion of the adjacent cross Wire 5 (FIGURE 5) so that further relatively downward movement offront section 1 is inhibited.

Thus,sections 1, 2, by means of connectingarms 13,pivot arms 14, 14' are freely and easily relatively movable into and from operative position and into and from inoperative or collapsed condition wherein rack A is reduced to a compact unit adapted for easy handling and transportability. When extended, rack A is quite sturdy and stable through gravity as well as through the weight of the bottles received therein.

Provided between front andback sections 1, 2, in planar parallel relationship therewith and of like dimensions thereto, is an intermediate or bottle-retainingsection 20 having aframe 21 comprised of parallelvertical side members 22, 22' and horizontal top andbottom members 23, 23', respectively, fabricated preferably of rod stock. Said top andbottom members 23, 23' are fixed, as by welding, to the adjacent connectingarms 13 across which the same transversely extend, and saidmembers 23, 23' are formed to present loops oreyelets 24 at their opposite ends through which the proximate end of theadjacent side member 22, 22' is hooked, as at 25, as for relative, rotative movement. Rigid at their ends uponside members 22, 22' is a plurality of vertically spaced apartcross wires 26 to which are secured, at the points of intersection, a series of horizontally spaced,longitudinal wires 27; said latter at their ends being bent for hook engagement upon the adjacent top orbottom member 23, 23'. Cross andlongitudinal wires 26, 27 offrame 21 are so arranged as to delineateopenings 28 of substantially like size asopenings 9 offrame 3 for accommodation of bottles received in the latter. To integratesection 20 within rack A there are providedtie arms 29 for connectingsaid section 20 withsections 1, 2, whicharms 29 are provided with eyelets 30 at their opposite ends for loose disposition about the cross wires of the various sections (FIGURESl and 3).

It will thus be seen that by its unique disposition upon top andbottom members 23, 23'intermediate section 20 will be moved correspondingly withsection 1 as the same is swung into operative or inoperative position. Saidsection 20 by virtue of its disposition upon connectingarms 13 will be located with respect tosection 1 so that itsopenings 28 will be aligned withcorresponding openings 9 along generally downwardly and inwardly inclined axis, wherebybottles 17 disposed within alignedopenings 9, 28 will be presented with their major axes at an inclination to the horizontal as may be seen in FIGURE 2. Thus, bottles b by such disposition will be secure within rack A and will furthermore be prevented from inadvertent displacement from said rack by operation ofintermediate section 20. Said rack thus will engage the bottles within their middle zone and thus inhibit same from undesirable tilting about their longitudinal axes and thereby preventbottles 11 from inadvertent slipping between the front andback sections 1, 2 with consequent breakage or loss, as has been incurred with racks heretofore utilized.

Therefore, in view of the foregoing, rack A comprises a most unique construction, which is highly durable, which may be easily collapsed; and which incorporates a 'bottle protecting section.

, It should be understood that changes and'modifications in the formation, construction, arrangement, and combination of the several parts of the bottle rack may be made and substitutedfor these herein shown and described without departing from the nature and principle of my invention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. An article-retaining rack comprising a back section, a front section, and an intermediate section, said sections being flat and in planar-parallel, mutual, ofi'set relationship, said front, intermediate'and back sections each having openings for alignment along downwardly, frontto-back inclined axes for reception and maintenance therein of articles ininclined relationship to the horizontal, swingable means interconnecting said front, back and intermediate sections for mutual relative movement toward and away from each other between rack-extended or article-receiving condition and collapsed or inoperative condition, and a pair of restraining arms interconnecting said front and back sections for maintaining the aforesaid sections in mutually ofiset relationship.

2. An article-retaining rack comprising a back section, a front section, and an intermediate section, said sections being flat and in planar parallel, mutual oflset relationship, said front, back, and intermediate sections each having openings for alignment along a downwardly, frontto-back inclined axis when said rack is in operative position for article reception and maintenance therein of such articles in inclined attitude to the horizontal, and swingable arms interconnecting said front and back sections at their upper and lower ends for mutual relative movement of said sections toward and away from each other between rack-extended or article-receiving condition and collapsed or inoperative condition, said intermediate section being engaged at its upper and lower ends to said swingable arms for movement therewith, and a pair of restraining arms connecting-said front and back sections on opposite sides for maintaining the aforesaid sections of the rack in mutually offset relationship in both extended and collapsed conditions.

3. An article-retaining rack comprising a back section, a front section, an intermediate section, each section having a frame and a series of perpendicular, longitudinal and cross Wires supported from said frame for defining article-receiving openings, said sections being in planar parallel, mutually ofiset relationship, with the upper end of said front section being disposed above the upper ends of said other sections and the upper end of said intermediate section being disposed above the back section and below the front section, the openings of said sections being aligned along a downwardly, front to back, inclined axis for receiving and maintaining therein articles in inclined relationship to the horizontal, swingable arms interconnecting said front and back sections at their up per and lower ends for mutual, relative movement between rack-extended and rack-collapsed condition, said intermediate section being supported from and engaged upon said swingable arms for movement therewith, said intermediate section being disposed more closely to the front section than the back section, and restraining arms interengaging said front and back sections for maintaining same and the intermediate section in mutual offset relationship, whether said rack is inextended or collapsed condition. i

, References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 253,081 7 McKensie' Ian. 31, 1882 1,071,670 7 Martin Aug. 26, 1913 1,095,429 Sokol May 5, 1914 1,281,318 Elmendorf Oct.15, 1918 2,271,941 Kemmitt Feb. 3, 1942 2,338,969 Robinson Jan. 11, 1944 2,428,454 Fowler Oct. 7, 1947 2,459,333 McKinley Ian. 18, 1949

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