Universal shoe rack

• US 20070080121A1
• Filed: 10/06/2005
• Published: 04/12/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 10/06/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Craig Pittman
• Original Assignee: Craig Pittman
• Inventors: Pittman, Craig
• Granted Patent: US 7,445,127 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 211/35
• CPC Class Codes: A47F 7/08 for shoes shoe hangers A47G25/005; shoe hangers with anti-theft means E05B69/003

Abstract

A shoe rack for hanging, storing, or displaying shoes comprising: a central support structure; and a plurality of brackets that are mounted to the central support structure, said brackets each including a mounting hook and a heel support, said mounting hook which protrudes from the front surface of the central support structure and terminates with a hooked portion which is directed in a downward position and angled towards the heel support, said mounting hook positioned such that the inside back portion of a shoe comes into contact with the mounting hook and the back of the shoe comes into contact with the heel support that is located below the mounting hook, such that the shoe would be held in a substantially horizontal orientation, with the front of the shoe pointed in a direction opposite to that of the central support structure.

Claims

1. A shoe rack system for hanging, storing, or displaying shoes comprising:

a central support structure; and

one or more brackets that are mounted to the central support structure, said brackets each including a mounting hook positioned such that the inside back portion of a shoe comes into contact with the mounting hook, such that the shoe is held in a substantially horizontal orientation.

2. The shoe rack system according to claim 1 including one or more heel supports which are mounted to the central support structure, wherein there are an equal number of heel supports as there are mounting hooks, wherein each heel support is located below one of the mounting hooks and provides a support for the back of the shoe.

3. The shoe rack system according to claim 2 wherein the heel support includes a concave surface that provides multiple points of contact with the heel of the shoe and thereby provide additional lateral support for the shoe.

4. The shoe rack system according to claim 1 including a heel support and mounting hook designed as an integral unit and are mounted to the central support system by a single mounting mechanism.

5. The shoe rack system according to claim 1 wherein the mounting mechanism may be inserted and reinserted into a plurality of bracket mounting holes that are provided in the central support system.

6. The shoe rack system according to claim 1 including a double mounting arm bracket that shares a single mounting mechanism and which includes two mounting hooks.

7. The shoe rack system according to claim 6 including two heel supports.

8. The shoe rack system according to claim 1 wherein the central support structure may be positioned in a vertical or horizontal orientation, in relation to the longest dimension of the central support structure, or a position intermediate between vertical and horizontal, and wherein the brackets may be mounted in two or more positions when rotated.

9. The shoe rack system according to claim 1 wherein the brackets include a double mounting arm bracket that shares a single mounting mechanism and which includes two mounting hooks and two heel supports, wherein a pair of shoes may be held side by side or with one shoe located above the other.

10. The shoe rack system according to claim 1 including a heel block to support the bottom of the shoe.

11. A shoe rack system for hanging, storing, or displaying shoes comprising:

a central support structure; and

a plurality of brackets that are mounted to the central support structure, said brackets each including a mounting plate which protrudes from the front surface of the central support structure and includes a lower shaft and an upper shaft attached to the mounting plate, said lower shaft being located a distance from the central support structure which is greater than the distance between the upper shaft and the central support structure.

12. The shoe rack system according to claim 11 wherein the bracket may be attached and reattached to a plurality of bracket mounting holes that are provided in the central support system.

13. The shoe rack system according to claim 11 wherein the central support structure may be positioned in a vertical or horizontal orientation, in relation to the longest dimension of the central support structure, or a position intermediate between vertical and horizontal, and wherein the brackets may to be mounted to the central support structure in two or more positions.

14. The shoe rack system according to claim 12 wherein the central support structure may be positioned in a vertical or horizontal orientation, in relation to the longest dimension of the central support structure, and wherein the brackets to be mounted to the central support structure in two or more positions when rotated by 90 degrees such that the lower shaft continues to be below the upper shaft regardless of the orientation of the central support structure.

15. The shoe rack system according to claim 11 wherein each of the brackets includes two lower shafts and two upper shafts in order to hold two pairs of shoes with one pair of shoes located above the other pair or with both pairs of shoes located side-by-side.

16. A method for hanging, storing, or displaying shoes comprising:

mounting a central support structure;

attaching a plurality of brackets to the central support structure, said brackets each including a mounting hook and a heel support, said mounting hook directed in a downward position and angled towards the heel support; and

placing a shoe on the mounting hook such that the inside back portion of the shoe comes into contact with the mounting hook and the outside back portion of the shoe comes into contact with the heel support.

17. The method according to claim 16 including supporting the outside back portion of the shoe by means of a concave surface that provides multiple points of contact with the shoe.

18. The method according to claim 16 including inserting the bracket in different rotational orientations into a plurality of bracket mounting holes that are provided in the central support structure, whereby the central support structure can be positioned in a vertical or horizontal position in relation to the longest dimension of the central support structure.

19. The method according to claim 16 including holding a pair of shoes with a single bracket that includes two mounting hooks and two heel supports.

20. The method according to claim 19 including holding the pair of shoes side by side or with one shoe located above the other.