SHOE RACK

SUPPORT A CHAUSSURES

English Abstract

A shoe rack includes subassemblies comprising a lower support including an
upward extending sleeve passing through a rear end and having a ridged section
on
its inner wall, an annular top projection extending inward, and an annular
intermediate projection extending inward from the ridged section; and an upper
support including a hollow cylinder passing through a rear end and having a
ridged
structure on its outer surface, an annular top groove on the ridged structure,
and an
annular intermediate groove on the ridged structure wherein the cylinder is
dimensioned to insert into the sleeve to be pivotably frictionally secured
thereto by
engaging the top groove with the top projection and the intermediate groove
with the
intermediate projection or engaging the intermediate groove with the top
projection;
and a pole passing through the sleeve and the cylinder of each subassembly.

French Abstract

L'invention concerne un support à chaussures comprenant des sous-ensembles et un support inférieur à manchon dirigé vers le haut passant par une extrémité arrière, ainsi qu'une section côtelée sur sa paroi intérieure, une projection annulaire supérieure s'étendant vers l'intérieur et une projection annulaire médiane s'étendant vers l'intérieur à partir de la section côtelée; il comporte aussi un support supérieur comprenant un cylindre creux qui passe par une extrémité arrière, et une structure côtelée sur sa surface extérieure, ainsi qu'une rainure annulaire supérieure sur la structure côtelée et une rainure annulaire médiane sur la tructure côtelée. Le cylindre est conçu pour s'insérer dans le manchon et s'y fixer par friction, tout en pouvant pivoter. Il s'engage dans la rainure supérieure avec la projection supérieure et la rainure médiane avec la projection correspondante ou dans la rainure médiane avec la projection supérieure, alors qu'un poteau passe par le manchon et le cylindre de chaque sous-ensemble.

Claims

WHAT IS CLAIMED IS:
1. A shoe rack comprising:
a plurality of shoe support subassemblies comprising a lower support including
a first support body and a sleeve longitudinally passing through a rear end of
the first
support body and upwardly extending a predetermined distance, the sleeve
having a
longitudinal first ridged section on an inner wall thereof, an annular first
projection
extending inwardly from the top of the first ridged section, and an annular
second
projection extending inwardly from an intermediate portion of the first ridged
section;
and an upper support including a second support body and a hollow cylinder
longitudinally passing through a rear end of the second support body and
downwardly extending a predetermined distance, the upper support having a
longitudinal second ridged section on an outer surface thereof, an annular
first
groove at a joining point of the second ridged section and the second support
body,
an annular second groove on an intermediate portion of the second ridged
section
wherein the cylinder is dimensioned to insert into the sleeve to be pivotably
frictionally secured thereto by cooperatively (i) engaging the first groove
with the first
projection and the second groove with the second projection respectively or
(ii)
engaging the second groove with the first projection; and
a tube dimensioned to pass through the sleeve and the cylinder of each shoe
support subassembly.
2. The shoe rack of claim 1 wherein the tube and the cylinder each have a
circular
cross section and the outer surface of the tube is slidingly engagable with
the inner
surface of the cylinder such that said shoe support subassembly is pivotable
about
said tube.
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3. The shoe rack of claim 1 or 2, wherein the upper support is inclined toward
its
rear end.
4. The shoe rack of any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the tube has an enlarged
base adapted to stably rest on a supporting ground.
5. The shoe rack of any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the tube has a first
member
laterally extending from a top end thereof to be secured to a wall, and a
second
member laterally extending from a bottom end thereof to be secured to the
wall.
6. The shoe rack of any one of claims 1 to 5, further comprising a dust cover
wrapped around the tube and the shoe support subassemblies.
7. The shoe rack of any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein an upper portion of the
sleeve is latched.
8. A shoe rack comprising:
a plurality of shoe support subassemblies comprising a lower support including
a first support body having a rear fastening member, and a sleeve
longitudinally
passing through a rear end of the first support body and upwardly extending a
predetermined distance, the sleeve having a longitudinal first ridged section
on an
inner wall thereof, an annular first projection extending inwardly from the
top of the
first ridged section, and an annular second projection extending inwardly from
an
intermediate portion of the first ridged section; and an upper support
including a
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second support body and a cylinder longitudinally passing through a rear end
of the
second support body and downwardly extending a predetermined distance, the
upper support having a longitudinal second ridged section on an outer surface
thereof, an annular first groove at a joining point of the second ridged
section and the
second support body, an annular second groove on an intermediate portion of
the
second ridged section wherein the cylinder is dimensioned to insert into the
sleeve to
be pivotably frictionally secured thereto by cooperatively (i) engaging the
first groove
with the first projection and the second groove with the second projection
respectively or (ii) engaging the second groove with the first projection; and
a tube having a plurality of mating fastening members each adapted to secure
to
the fastening member.
9. The shoe rack of claim 8, wherein the upper support is inclined toward its
rear
end.
10. The shoe rack of claim 8 or 9, wherein the tube has an enlarged base
adapted to
stably rest on a supporting ground.
11. The shoe rack of claim 8 or 9, wherein the tube has a first member
laterally
extending from a top end thereof to be secured to a wall, and a second member
laterally extending from a bottom end thereof to be secured to the wall.
12. The shoe rack of any one of claims 8 to 11, further comprising a dust
cover
wrapped around the tube and the shoe support subassemblies.
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13. The shoe rack of any one of claims 8 to 11, wherein an upper portion of
the
sleeve is latched.
14. The shoe rack of claim 8, wherein the tube has a rectangular section.
15. The shoe rack of claim 8 or 14, wherein the fastening member is a hook and
the
mating fastening member is a slit.
16. The shoe rack of claim 8 or 14, wherein the fastening member is a slit and
the
mating fastening member is a hook.
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Description

CA 02625321 2010-11-19
SHOE RACK
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of Invention
The invention relates to shoe racks and more particularly to such a shoe rack
having means adapted to adjust height between shoe supports of the same
subassembly and being highly adaptable so as to fully utilize space.
2. Description of Related Art
Typically, pairs of shoes are stored in a shoe cabinet. The conventional shoe
cabinet has a large storage space. Thus, the conventional shoe cabinet may
occupy
a large space of a room. Furthermore, internal space of the conventional shoe
cabinet is divided into multiple tiers for storing shoes. However, these pairs
of shoes
may be different styles with different heights. The storage space of a tier is
not
effectively utilized if only pair of high-heeled shoes is stored therein with
pairs of
slippers being stored side by side in the remaining space. The conventional
shoe
racks also have the same drawback.
The invention has arisen to mitigate and/or obviate the disadvantage of the
conventional shoe cabinet/rack.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is therefore one object of the invention to provide a shoe rack having
means
adapted to adjust height between shoe supports of the same subassembly and
being
highly adaptable so as to fully utilize space.
The above and other objects, features and advantages of the invention will
become apparent from the following detailed description taken with the
accompanying drawings.
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CA 02625321 2010-11-19
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is an exploded view of a shoe support subassembly according to a first
preferred embodiment of the invention;
FIG. 2 is a side elevation in part section of the shoe support subassembly
where
a distance between the lower support and the lower support is a minimum;
FIG. 3 is a view similar to FIG. 2 where the distance is greater than that
shown in
FIG. 2 after adjusting;
FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view of a shoe cabinet having an upper
compartment mounted with at least one shoe support subassembly having two
shoes supported thereon, and a lower compartment mounted with at least one
shoe
support subassembly having two shoes supported thereon as a first
configuration of
the first preferred embodiment of the invention;
FIG. 5 is an exploded view of the shoe support subassembly where the lower
support and the upper support of the shoe support subassembly, as one of a
plurality
of such shoe support subassemblies, are to be assembled on a tube of circular
section as a second configuration of the first preferred embodiment of the
invention;
FIG. 6 is a side elevation in part section of the shoe support subassembly and
the tube shown in FIG. 5 where a distance between the lower support and the
lower
support is a minimum;
FIG. 7 is a view similar to FIG. 6 where the distance is greater than that
shown in
FIG. 2 after adjusting;
FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a shoe rack assembled as a stand according to
the second configuration of the first preferred embodiment of the invention
where the
shoe support subassemblies are longitudinally aligned;
FIG. 9 is a view similar to FIG. 8 where any shoe support subassembly is
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CA 02625321 2010-11-19
oriented about 90 degrees with respect to an adjacent one when the shoe rack
is
disposed on a room corner;
FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the shoe rack shown in FIG. 8 where a
transparent dust cover is mounted therearound according to a third
configuration of
the first preferred embodiment of the invention;
FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a wall mounted shoe rack according to a
fourth
configuration of the first preferred embodiment of the invention;
FIG. 12 is an exploded perspective view of a portion of a shoe rack where one
shoe support subassembly has been mounted on a tube of rectangular section and
the other shoe support subassembly is to be assembled thereon according to a
second preferred embodiment of the invention;
FIG. 13 is a side view in part section of the lower shoe support subassembly
shown in FIG. 12 with two shoes being supported thereon; and
FIG. 14 is a perspective view of a portion of a shoe rack assembled as a stand
according to a third preferred embodiment of the invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Referring to FIGS. 1 to 3, a shoe support subassembly according to a first
preferred embodiment of the invention is shown. The shoe support subassembly
comprises a lower support 10 and an upper support 20. Each component is
discussed in detail below.
The lower support 10 is substantially shaped as a sole and comprises a sleeve
11 longitudinally passing through a rear portion and upward extending a
predetermined distance. A channel 116 of reduced diameter is provided to
divide an
internal space of the sleeve 11 into a lower space 113 and an upper space 115
in
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CA 02625321 2010-11-19
communication with the lower space 113. An inner wall of the upper space 115
is
formed with a longitudinal ridged section 114. A plurality of longitudinal
slits 111 are
formed on an upper portion of the sleeve 11 so as to make the upper portion
flexible.
An annular upper projection 11 2A is formed around the mouth of the upper
space 115
and extends inwards. An annular lower projection 112B is formed around an
intermediate portion of the inner wall of the upper portion of the sleeve 11.
The upper support 20 is also substantially shaped as a sole and is inclined
toward its rear. The upper support 20 comprises a hollow cylinder 21
longitudinally
passing through a rear portion and downward extending a predetermined
distance.
An outer surface of the lower support 20 is formed with a longitudinal ridged
section
212. An annular upper groove 211A is formed at a joining point of the upper
support
with the inclined section of thereof. An annular lower groove 211 B is formed
around an intermediate portion of the outer surface of the upper support 20.
The cylinder 21 has an outer diameter substantially the same as an inner
15 diameter of the sleeve 11. Thus, the cylinder 21 is adapted to fully insert
into the
sleeve 11 to be pivotably frictionally secured thereto by matingly engaging
the upper
groove 211A with the upper projection 112A and the lower groove 211B with the
lower projection 112B respectively (see FIG. 2). Further, a distance between
the
lower support 10 and the upper support 20 as shown in FIG. 2 can be adjusted
20 depending on applications by pulling the upper support 20 upward to engage
the
lower groove 211 B with the upper projection 11 2A (see FIG. 3).
Referring to FIG. 4, there is shown a shoe cabinet 60 having a shelf 61 for
dividing an internal space thereof into an upper compartment mounted with at
least
one shoe support subassembly (only one is shown) having two shoes supported on
the lower support 10 and the upper support 20 respectively, and a lower
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CA 02625321 2010-11-19
compartment with at least one shoe support subassembly (only one is shown)
having
two shoes supported on the lower support 10 and the upper support 20
respectively
as a first configuration of the first preferred embodiment of the invention.
Referring to FIGS. 5 to 9, a second configuration of the first preferred
embodiment of the invention is shown and its characteristics are detailed
below. A
tube 31 of circular section has an outer diameter substantially the same as an
inner
diameter of the reduced member and the inner diameter of the cylinder 21.
Also, a
flexible ring 311 is adapted to put on the tube 31. Thus, the tube 31 is
adapted to
pass through the sleeve 11 and the cylinder 21 and the flexible ring 311 is
urged
against the bottom of the reduced member. The provision of the flexible ring
311 is to
enhance the frictional fastening of the lower support 10 and the upper support
20
with the tube 31. In addition to the feature of adjusting a distance between
the lower
support 10 and the upper support 20 as described above and the shoe support
subassemblies being adapted to assemble as longitudinally aligned ones (see a
stand 30 of FIG. 8), any shoe support subassembly is adapted to orient about
90
degrees with respect to an adjacent one by frictionally pivoting itself about
the tube
31 when the shoe rack is disposed on a room corner (see FIG. 9). This can
reserve
space for storing larger shoes on the upper supports 20 when such need arises.
Referring to FIG. 10, the shoe rack shown in FIG. 8 is additionally provided
with
a zipped transparent dust cover 50 therearound according to a third
configuration of
the first preferred embodiment of the invention.
Referring to FIG. 11, a rounded enlarged member 40 is formed at either top or
bottom end of the tube 31. Also, each rounded enlarged member 40 extends
laterally
to be secured to a wall. This wall mounted shoe rack is according to a fourth
configuration of the first preferred embodiment of the invention.
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CA 02625321 2010-11-19
Referring to FIGS. 12 to 13, a second preferred embodiment of the invention is
shown. The characteristics of the second preferred embodiment are detailed
below.
The tube 31 is eliminated. The shoe rack comprises a tube 32 of rectangular
section.
A plurality of horizontal slits 321 are formed along one surface of the tube
32. A hook
12 is formed on the rear end of the lower support 10. The hook 12 is adapted
to
insert into the slit 321 to mount the shoe support subassembly on the tube 32.
Alternatively, a plurality of horizontal hooks may be formed along one surface
of the
tube 32, and a slit may be formed on the rear end of the lower support 10. The
hook is adapted to insert into the slit so that the shoe support subassembly
and the
tube 32 can be fastened together.
Referring to FIG. 14, a third preferred embodiment of the invention is shown.
The characteristics of the third preferred embodiment are detailed below. The
upper
supports 20 are eliminated and each lower supports 10' is adapted to support a
pair
of shoes (not shown) thereon.
While the invention herein disclosed has been described by means of specific
embodiments, numerous modifications and variations could be made thereto by
those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the
invention set
forth in the claims.
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Representative Drawing