A CLIP FOR REMOVABLY FIXING AND HOLDING A NUMBER OF SHOES

A clip for removably fixing and holding a number of shoes

The invention relates to a clip for removably fixing a number of shoes.

Shoe holders for temporarily storing shoes are generally known in the art. The most common shoe holder is a shoe rack in which the shoes are placed horizontally to prevent dirt on the soles from being left on the floor or carpet. Such a shoe holder takes up much of the often already modest floor space in e.g. an entrance hall. Additionally the shoes are easily pushed around between each other when new shoes are placed in the shoe rack and therefore fall on the floor.

From the American patent document US 5,894,940 is known a shoe holder for being hung on a wall. The shoes are placed vertically hung in several parallel rows on a number of adjacent metal arcs serving as hooks, the arc being taken through the opening of the shoe in direction towards the toe of the shoe. This known shoe holder depends on the shoe to be hung having a certain size. The sole of a hung shoe is furthermore facing outwards and a dirty sole can easily be contacted by a passing person who therefore risks getting the clothes dirty.

A first aspect of the invention is to provide a shoe holder of the kind mentioned in the opening paragraph that can hold a shoe safely and reliably.

A second aspect of the invention is to provide a shoe holder that is easy and inexpensive to manufacture and maintains an aesthetically beautiful appearance when the shoes are placed in the shoe holder. A third aspect of the invention is to provide a shoe holder that can be hung on a wall in such a way that the shoes can be placed without a passing person risking getting dirty.

The novel and unique feature according to the invention, whereby this is achieved, is the fact that the shoe holder has form of a clip comprising a frame having two opposite jaws. The jaws define a space for tightly receiving the shoes, and the frame and/or jaws are arranged to at least partly enlarge the space elastically upon insertion of a shoe.

Because the space can be enlarged, the shoe is held safely and securely between the jaws of the clip. The toe of the shoe can easily be inserted and fixed in the space so that the shoe can be hung for temporary storing before use again in which the toe easily can be pulled out again.

Advantageously the frame can, seen in cross section, be U- shaped and the jaws be placed opposite each other on the inside of each of the legs of the U. A frame designed in such a way appears aesthetically beautiful and is simple to hang on a wall.

The base of the U furthermore forms a natural stop to the toe when it is inserted so that the person placing the shoe is certain that the shoe is placed correctly and will not unintentionally fall out of the frame.

In a first embodiment the U-shaped frame can be made of a rigid material and at least one of the jaws can be made of an elastic material. On insertion of a shoe in a frame designed in such a way, the first elastic jaw can be shaped after the contour of the shoe and the second jaw can form an abutment to the sole, which means that the shoe can be fixed effectively and reliably. The shoe can be hung in a gentle way and will not be deformed unnecessarily. The above gentle effect is also obtained if the entire U- shaped frame or both jaws are made of an elastic material. The elastic forces generated by enlargement of the space can be distributed across the entire clip in this alternative embodiment .

An elastic jaw can advantageously be made of foam rubber or plastic that provide the above flexibility and elasticity. These materials are furthermore inexpensive and can be chosen to have a light weight.

A detachable foam rubber jaw can be designed with an adherend that is covered by a removable tape or foil to thereby provide the possibility of mounting the jaws of the clip according to individual needs.

In a preferred embodiment the elastic jaw can be shaped as a brush. The bristles will advantageously bend in a gentle manner when the shoe with e.g. its toe is inserted in the clip. The bristles will spread to grip around the shoe and hold this shoe in a removable manner in the clip. As the bristles are spread around the shoe and possibly enter into openings in this shoe, a clip having a jaw in form of a brush will easily be able to hold shoes of widely different sizes and shapes. For example an open sandal could easily be held. The length of the bristles can be given any preferred length within the scope of the invention.

Both a foam rubber jaw, a plastic jaw or a brush jaw will furthermore clean the parts of the uppers of the shoe that are in contact with the jaw when it is placed in the clip according to the present invention.

Advantageously, the elastic jaw can be detachably mounted in the frame so that it easily can be cleaned, replaced or inverted as required. The need for replacing or inverting can e.g. arise when the jaw has been worn and lost its ability to hold a number of shoes after repeated use.

When a shoe is inserted between the two jaws, the bristles on an elastic jaw in form of a brush will yield in the insertion direction. A shoe that has hung and been held for some time will therefore contribute to permanently deform some preferred types of bristles in direction towards the frame.

Such an undesired deformation can advantageously be avoided if the elastic jaw is inverted now and then so that the bristle orientation is reversed.

The means for detachably mounting an elastic jaw can e.g. be merely screws or nails, by means of which the elastic jaw is mounted on the frame. In a more elegant embodiment, the elastic jaw can be secured detachably in an insertion rail or track, which is mounted on or in the frame. Within the scope of the invention, cooperative means can be designed on the frame and/or the elastic jaw, respectively, and be arranged for coupling or engagement .

The spacing between the base of the U and the jaw on one leg can advantageously correspond to or be slightly larger than the spacing between the shoe toe and the opening in a typical shoe.

Thereby it is expediently ensured that the clip can receive a larger number of shoes of different sizes.

The spacing between the base of the U and the end of its second leg can correspond to or be slightly larger than the spacing between the shoe toe and the counter of a typical shoe to thereby ensure that the entire second leg has an extent that is sufficiently large to support an entire sole. The sole will therefore at no time be in direct contact with the mounting wall, which can therefore be spared being soiled by the leavings of e.g. dirt or mud that often will be on a sole.

If the second leg of the U-shaped frame furthermore forms the second jaw, the sole of the shoe can be pushed into the clip particularly easily and slidingly.

To further ensure that a held shoe does not unintentionally fall out of the shoe holder according to the present invention, an outward projecting projection can be provided along the free end of the second leg, said projection extending e.g. mainly perpendicularly out from the second leg and serving for forming support to the counter of the shoe in the hung state of the shoe.

Alternatively the projection can have form of a channel having e.g. a U-shaped cross section. Such a channel serves advantageously for catching and holding dirt and filth, which possibly fall off the held soles.

The second leg of the U-shaped frame can advantageously be prepared for being hung on a wall, where hanging can take place by means of means known to a person skilled in the art, such as e.g. screws, nails, mountings or the like.

By hanging on a wall shoes held in the clip can in a simple way be placed in a vertical position, for example with the sole flushing the wall to thus take up less space than if they were standing side by side on a floor.

By hanging several clips next to or on top of each other, a wall area can replace the floor area on which shoes are left in most households. A clip according to the invention can furthermore be manipulated easily and elegantly by means of the feet by the shoe being guided up into the space, in which it is tightly received, after which the foot can be pulled out of the shoe easily. Inversely, the foot can be guided into the shoe and by placing the heel against the counter of the shoe, the shoe can thus be pulled out easily again.

In an alternative embodiment one or more hinge connections can be inserted between the legs or jaws of the clip.

If such a hinge connection e.g. is spring-loaded, the space between the jaws can be enlarged in a simple way when a shoe is inserted and stuck to thus tightly receive a shoe.

In yet another alternative embodiment the base and first leg of a U-shaped clip can, via a hinge connection in or very close to the second leg, be pivotally connected to this second leg so that the base and first leg or only the first leg are pivotal about the swivelling axis of the hinge connection. The freely movable, pivotal part of the clip can be given a weight that advantageously can exert such a large pressure load on the hung shoe that this shoe is prevented from falling out of a hung clip.

Exemplary embodiments of a shoe holder are described in the following with reference to the drawing, in which

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of a shoe holder in form of a clip according to the invention, hung on a wall,

Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line II - II of fig. 1,

Fig. 3 is a side elevational view of a second embodiment of a clip according to the invention, hung on a wall, Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken along the line IV - IV of fig. 3,

Fig. 5 is a side elevational view of a third embodiment of a clip according to the invention, hung on a wall, and

Fig. 6 is side elevational view of a fourth embodiment of a clip according to the invention.

The invention is described below on the assumption that the clip is hung on a wall. This is not to be taken as limiting the invention that just as effectively can be designed as e.g. a freestanding arrangement that freely can be placed on the floor.

Figs. 1 and 2 show a clip 1 with a frame 2 having a U-shaped profile 3 seen in cross section. The U-shaped frame has a base 4, a first leg 5, and a second leg 6.

The first leg 5 and the second leg 6 have opposite jaws, a first jaw 7 and a second jaw 8 respectively. The jaws 7,8 define a space 10 for receiving a shoe 9.

The space 10 is dimensioned in such a way that its width is smaller than the thickness of the shoe 9 taken across the sole 11 of the shoe in an area 12 from a shoe toe 13 to a shoe opening 14, whereby the shoe will be held tightly in place in the frame .

In the embodiment in figs. 1 and 2 the first jaw 7 is advantageously made of an elastic material such as foam rubber or foam plastic so that the space 10 between the jaws 7,8 can be enlarged to receive shoes 9 of different thicknesses. The elastic jaw 7 furthermore has the advantage of a large contact area being produced between the jaw 7 and the uppers of the shoe 9.

The spacing between the base 4 of the frame 2 and the end of the first leg 5 is smaller than the spacing between the toe 13 and the shoe opening 14, and the spacing between the base 4 of the frame 2 and the end of the second leg 6 is slightly larger than the spacing between the toe 13 and the counter 15 of the shoe 9.

In this embodiment the second leg 6 forms the second jaw 8 on which the entire sole is resting in friction engagement.

The second jaw can possibly be applied with a rough surface (not shown) , for example a sand mixture, whereby further friction is obtained for holding the shoe in the clip.

In fig. 1, the clip 1 is shown hung on a wall 16 by means of screws 17 through the second leg 6.

Figs. 3 and 4 show a modified second embodiment of a clip according to the invention and the same reference numerals are used for like parts. The first jaw 7 of the clip 18 is a brush 19 in this embodiment.

When the shoe 9 is taken in the shoe insertion direction indicated by the arrow into the space 10, the bristles of the brush 19 will yield in the insertion direction, and the shoe 9 will slide effortlessly into the space 10. The clip 18 will subsequently hold the shoe 9 safely in place, the brush 19 during this functioning as a flexible barb.

Within the scope of the invention the length and thickness of the bristles can be varied to hold shoes of different shapes and sizes. For example several brushes can be placed along the longitudinal extent of the clip 18.

In fig. 5 a third embodiment 20 of a clip is seen and the same reference numerals are used for like parts. The clip 20 has a hairpin-shaped frame 2 with a base 4, a first leg 21 and a second leg 6.

The first leg 21 of the frame 2 is shaped as an S, where the first jaw 22 is a section of the first leg 21 and the second jaw 8 is the second leg 6.

In this embodiment, the frame 2 is made of a relatively elastic material so that the transverse extent of the space 10 between the two jaws 22,8 resiliently can receive and hold a shoe 9 of many different sizes.

In fig. 6 a fourth embodiment of a clip 23 according to the invention is seen and the same reference numerals are used for like parts.

The clip 23 has a first brush jaw 24, which in this embodiment also is shown to be of an elastic material to thus be able to move in direction away from the opposite second brush jaw 25. In this embodiment, the brush jaws cover the greater part of the inside of the respective leg 5,6.

The two brush jaws 24,25 have bristles, the length of which decreases in direction towards the free ends of the legs 5,6 of the frame 2.

The shoe 9 is wedged in the conic space 26 between brush jaws

24,25. The sole 11 is cleaned and the toe 13 polished at the same time as the shoe 9 is held by respectively a clamping force exerted by the brush jaws 24,25 and a frictional force exerted by the contact of the bristles of the brush jaws 24,25 with the shoe 9.

Within the scope of the invention the shoe holder can have many other modifications, and the appended claims are not limited to the embodiments shown in the figures that only serve as examples .

A shoe holder can be made of a wide range of different types of wood, plastic materials or metal, or can alternatively be made of a combination of two or more of the mentioned or similar materials.

Such a plastic can for example be transparent so that it is possible to visually identify different shoe toes through at least the first leg.

The exterior of the first leg can furthermore be provided with information, decoration or hooks for hanging e.g. keys on.

Several shoe holders can be placed in parallels or series, and the physical dimensions of the shoe holder can be of any size depending on the actual need.