Set of baggage holders

Description

PRIORITY STATEMENT

This application claims benefit of priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119 from Swedish Patent Application No. 0501131-7 filed on May 18, 2005, in the Swedish Patent Office, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a set of baggage holders comprising an elongate central portion which is partly grasped by a holding means with an arcuate engaging portion, which holding means also has a holding portion, the holding means being movable along and rotatably arranged on the central portion.

BACKGROUND ART

In the trunk of most cars the space, that is in this case the floor, is sufficient to accommodate a number of carrier bags and in most cases even larger. When driving a loaded vehicle, these carrier bags therefore usually “fly” around in the trunk if they are not lashed. A simple variant of lashing is to provide the trunk with hooks on which the carrier bags can be hung. The hooks may in turn, for instance, be suspended by snap action from a round rod. However, these hooks come loose quite easily if subjected to a lateral load. A solution to this problem is the currently frequently used carrier bag holders for vehicles where a hook is instead hung and movably arranged in a T groove, which groove can be an aluminum profile attached to the hatrack of the vehicle. In certain cases, these hanging hooks may however be an obstacle when putting, for instance, large boxes and containers in the trunk.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The object of the present invention therefore is to provide a solution to the above problems involving an improved baggage holding device.

According to the invention, this object is achieved by a set of baggage holders of the type stated by way of introduction being given the features that are defined in claim 1.

According to the present invention, a set of baggage holders comprises an elongate central portion which is partly grasped by a holding means with an arcuate engaging portion, which holding means also has a holding portion, the holding means being movable along and rotatably arranged on the central portion, wherein it further comprises an elongate peripheral portion which at least partly surrounds the central portion, at a distance and parallel thereto, and which also partly grasps said arcuate engaging portion in such a manner that the space formed by said distance between the central portion and the peripheral portion forms a guide path which in the cross-sectional plane of the set of baggage holders has a curve corresponding to the arcuate shape of the engaging portion of the holding means. One of the advantages of this design is that it allows the holding means to be rotated and thus, when required, to be turned away so that large objects can be accommodated in the trunk. The combination of a central and a peripheral portion besides reduces the risk that the holding means is unintentionally released when subjected to uneven load.

The central portion and the peripheral portion are suitably interconnected to form a single profile in such a manner that the curved guide path has a closed end and an open end. With this solution, the central portion and the peripheral portion can be made as a single profile, and the mutual location of these portions is already determined in mounting. Still more preferred, the single profile is an extruded aluminum profile which is relatively easy and cost-effective to manufacture.

Moreover the central portion and the peripheral portion are preferably formed, at least at one end of the guide path formed by the central portion and the peripheral portion, with a radius of curvature which differs from the arcuate shape of the holding means to limit the rotation of the holding means relative to the central portion and the peripheral portion. The possibility of rotating the holding means is thus limited to prevent, for instance, the holding means from being turned away when trying to hang a carrier bag. This limitation of rotation is particularly advantageous if the user's other hand cannot be used to assist in hanging up the carrier bag. It is also convenient to have a limitation of rotation in the other direction as well, that is to facilitate unhooking of the carrier bag and preventing the holding means from being turned with the carrier bag. This limitation is especially advantageous when the set of baggage holders is arranged under a hatrack since otherwise, for instance, the opening of a hook can be locked to the hatrack and thus prevent the carrier bag from being removed.

The fact that the holding portion of the holding means is in the shape of a hook is, in terms of manufacture, the simplest and most cost-effective variant of the holding portion.

Preferably the holding means is in the form of an open loop. This affects mainly the design of the central portion and the peripheral portion which will have a more natural design. It is thus also possible to give the holding means the shape of an S.

In a preferred embodiment, the central portion and the peripheral portion are made of aluminum in order to minimize the cost of manufacture.

In order to further minimize the costs, the holding means is in one embodiment made of plastic and most preferably in one piece.

The holding means is suitably made of an inelastic material. This minimizes the risk that the holding means is released from the central and the peripheral portion. A material that is too flexible may result in, for instance, a carrier bag sliding off the “hook” when stretched out. Moreover it may be convenient for the material of the holding means to be such that it cracks when subjected to excessively high loads which may arise, for instance, when suddenly braking a vehicle. This prevents the hatrack from being subjected to excessive loads.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will in the following be described in more detail by way of an embodiment and with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIGS. 1a and 1b are different perspective views of a profile set according to the present invention.

FIG. 1c is a side view of the profile set in FIGS. 1a and 1b.

FIGS. 2a, 2b and 2c are side views of a set of baggage holders according to the present invention with the holding means in different positions.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of an embodiment of a holding means according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a set of baggage holders according to the present invention from which carrier bags are suspended.

DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

FIGS. 1a-1c illustrate a profile set 1 according to a preferred embodiment of the invention. The profile set comprises a central portion 2 and a peripheral portion 3 and also a fastening portion 4 for fastening the profile set 1.

FIGS. 2a-2c illustrate the entire set of baggage holders 5, that is the profile set 1 and the holding means 6, which holding means further comprises an engaging portion 7 and a holding portion 8. The set of baggage holders is in these Figures mounted on a hatrack 9. The set of baggage holders 5 is arranged in such a manner that the driving direction of the vehicle is to the left as seen in FIGS. 2a-2c and, thus, the rear of the vehicle is to the right. FIG. 2a illustrates the set of baggage holders 5 when the holding means 6 is practically in its rear (front) position. Here the transition 10 between the central portion 2 and the peripheral portion 3 acts as a stop for the end of the engaging portion 7 of the holding means. Alternatively the stop may consist of the lug 13. The purpose of a stop at this angle is that it should be easy to use one hand to hang, for instance, a carrier bag on the holding portion 8 of the holding means 6 without the holding means 6 placing itself parallel to the hatrack 9. When suddenly reducing the speed of the vehicle, such as when braking, the lug 13 can also serve as an indication where the holding means 6 can be broken to prevent the hatrack 9 from being subjected to excessive loads. In a preferred embodiment, the curve of the engaging portion 7 of the holding means is such that, in the end position shown in the Figure, it can be retained in this position by friction against the central portion 2 and/or the peripheral portion. FIG. 2b illustrates the set of baggage holders 5 when the holding means 6 is in its front position where a portion of the holding means 6 abuts against the end of the central portion 2, the extent of said end causing the shape of the guide path, which path is formed by the space between the central portion 2 and the peripheral portion 3, to deviate from the arcuate shape of the engaging portion 7 of the holding means. When, for example, a carrier bag is to be removed from the holding portion 8 of the holding means, it is important that the hook 6 not position itself parallel to the hatrack 9 so that the opening of the holding means is closed. This is thus prevented by the stop which consists of the end of the central portion in the embodiment illustrated. FIG. 2c shows the set of baggage holders 5 when the holding means 6 is in what may be referred to as the normal position. In a preferred embodiment, the holding means 6 is insertable into the guide path only from the side of the profile set 1. This prevents a holding means 6 from inadvertently coming loose from the profile set 1.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the holding means 6. The holding means 6 preferably has a width which exceeds the material thickness of the holding means and still more preferably also exceeds the depth of the guide path, that is the distance between the central portion 2 and the peripheral portion 3. This reduces the risk of the holding means 6 being wedged in the profile set 1 when subjected to a lateral load, that is a lateral load seen in the driving direction of the vehicle. Moreover, lateral displacement of a holding means 6 along the profile set 1 may also be facilitated.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a set of baggage holders 5 with carrier bags 12 suspended from the holding means 6. The set of baggage holders 5 is here also provided with holes 11 for fastening to a hatrack for instance. The ends of the profile set are here also provided with stoppers to prevent the holding means 6 from sliding out of the profile set 1.

It will be appreciated that many modifications of the above-described embodiment of the invention are conceivable within the scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. As for instance described above and illustrated in FIGS. 2a and 2b, the described end positions, that is the angle of the holding means relative to the profile set 1, of the holding means 6 can be adjusted as desired. Furthermore the holding means 6 may have a holding portion 8 which, as an alternative to a hook, is for instance a clip or one of a female-male coupling.