Tack for hanging an article from a wall

• US 7,431,258 B2
• Filed: 02/22/2006
• Issued: 10/07/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 02/22/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Alan Lamotta
• Original Assignee: Alan Lamotta
• Inventors: Lamotta, Alan
• Primary Examiner(s): CHAN, KO HUNG
• Application Number:
  US11/360,108
• Publication Number:
  US 20070194202A1
• Time in Patent Office: 958 Days
• Field of Search: 248/489, 248/493, 248/494, 248/497, 248/498, 248/475.1, 248/547, 248/217.3, 248/301, 248/546, 248/684, 248/300, 411/473, 411/474, 411/477, 411/478, 411/499
• US Class Current: 248/475.1
• CPC Class Codes: A47G 1/20 Picture hooks; X-hooks plugs or hooks for general use F16B13/00, F16B45/00
• CPC Class Codes: A47G 1/22 Pin plates

Abstract

A tack for hanging an article from a wall. The tack includes a plate and a pin. The plate abuts the wall. The pin has a picture-engaging portion extending diagonally upwardly and forwardly from the plate to engage the picture and a wall-engaging portion extending diagonally downwardly and rearwardly from the plate to penetrate the wall when the plate is pressed by a thumb of a user. In one embodiment, the wall-engaging portion of the pin is singular and collinear with the picture-engaging portion of the pin. In another embodiment, the wall-engaging portion of the pin is doubled to form a pair of wall-engaging portions that straddle, and are parallel to, the picture-engaging portion of the pin. In another embodiment, the plate has a lower portion with a pair of axial legs terminating in free ends that are beveled for safety and an upper portion with a pair of axial legs having a pair of spikes, respectively, extending diagonally downwardly and rearwardly therefrom to penetrate the wall when the plate is pressed by the thumb of the user, and which are one piece with, and stamped and bent from, the pair of axial legs of the upper portion of the plate, respectively, and which are parallel to, spaced from, and straddle, the wall-engaging portion of the pin.

Claims

1. A tack for hanging an article from a wall, comprising:

a) a plate; and

b) a pin;

wherein said plate is for abutting the wall;

wherein said plate is for providing a surface for a thumb of a user to use to press said pin into the wall;

wherein said pin extends diagonally upwardly and forwardly from said plate for engaging the picture;

wherein said pin extends diagonally downwardly and rearwardly from said plate for penetrating the wall when said plate is pressed by the thumb of the user;

wherein said plate has a wall-facing surface;

wherein said plate has a picture-facing surface;

wherein said picture-facing surface of said plate is opposite to said wall-facing surface of said plate;

wherein said pin has a picture-engaging portion;

wherein said pin has a wall-engaging portion;

wherein said picture-engaging portion of said pin extends diagonally upwardly from said picture-facing surface of said plate;

wherein said wall-engaging portion of said pin extends diagonally downwardly from said wall-facing surface of said plate;

wherein said plate has an upper portion;

wherein said plate has a lower portion;

wherein said upper portion of said plate is divided from said lower portion of said plate by a cross member of said plate;

wherein said upper portion of said plate is inverted U-shaped;

wherein said upper portion of said plate is formed by a pair of axial legs;

wherein said upper portion of said plate is formed by an upper transverse portion;

wherein the inverted U-shaped upper portion of the plate is defined by said upper transverse portion and said pair of axial legs extending downwardly from the upper transverse portion;

wherein said pair of axial legs of said upper portion of said plate are connected to each other by said upper transverse portion of said upper portion of said plate and said pair of axial legs define a bottom of said upper portion of said plate;

wherein said bottom of said upper portion of said plate is closed by said cross member of said plate;

wherein said pair of axial legs of said upper portion of said plate have a pair of spikes, respectively; and

wherein said pair of spikes of said pair of axial legs of said upper portion of said plate extend diagonally downwardly and rearwardly from said pair of axial legs respectively at said bottom of said upper portion of the plate.

2. The tack of claim 1, wherein said wall-engaging portion of said pin is singular;

and wherein said wall-engaging portion of said pin is collinear with said picture-engaging portion of said pin.

3. The tack of claim 1, wherein said pin is one piece with said plate;

wherein said pin is stamped from said plate; and

wherein said pin is bent from said plate.

4. The tack of claim 1, wherein said picture-engaging portion of said pin extends diagonally upwardly and forwardly from said cross member of said plate;

and

wherein said wall-engaging portion of said pin extends diagonally downwardly and rearwardly from said cross member of said plate.

5. The tack of claim 1, wherein each leg of said pair of axially legs of said upper portion of said plate has an inner length;

wherein said picture-engaging portion of said pin has a length; and

wherein said length of said picture-engaging portion of said pin is less than said inner length of each leg of said pair of axial legs of said upper portion of said plate so as to allow said picture-engaging portion of said pin to be bent diagonally upwardly and forwardly out of said upper portion of said plate without interference from said upper transverse portion of said upper portion of said plate.

6. The tack of claim 1, wherein said upper transverse portion of said upper portion of said plate, together with said cross member of said plate, provide a rigid and continuous surface of said upper portion of said plate for pressing by the thumb of the user.

7. The tack of claim 1, wherein said lower portion of said plate is formed by a pair of axial legs;

wherein said pair of axial legs of said lower portion of said plate extend from said pair of axially legs of said upper portion of said plate, respectively, to define a bottom of said lower portion of said plate; and

wherein said bottom of said lower portion of said plate is open.

8. The tack of claim 7, wherein said pair of axial legs of said lower portion of said plate extend collinearly from said pair of axially legs of said upper portion of said plate, respectively.

9. The tack of claim 7, wherein each leg of said pair of axially legs of said lower portion of said plate has an inner length;

wherein said wall-engaging portion of said pin has a length; and

wherein said wall-engaging portion of said pin is bent diagonally downwardly and rearwardly out of said lower portion of said plate with said length of said wall-engaging portion of said pin being greater than said inner length of each leg of said pair of axial legs of said lower portion of said plate as a result of said bottom of said lower portion of said plate being open.

10. The tack of claim 1, wherein said wall-engaging portion of said pin terminates in a free end;

and

wherein said free end of said wall-engaging portion of said pin is pointed for facilitating penetration into the wall.

11. The tack of claim 1, wherein said wall-engaging portion of said pin is doubled to form a pair of wall-engaging portions.

12. The tack of claim 11, wherein said pair of wall-engaging portions of said pin straddle said picture-engaging portion of said pin.

13. The tack of claim 11, wherein said pair of wall-engaging portions of said pin are parallel to said picture-engaging portion of said pin.

14. The tack of claim 7, wherein said pair of axial legs of said lower portion of said plate terminate in free ends;

and

wherein said free ends of said pair of axial legs of said lower portion of said plate are beveled.

15. The tack of claim 1, wherein said pair of spikes are one piece with said pair of axial legs of said upper portion of said plate, respectively;

wherein said pair of spikes are stamped from said pair of axial legs of said upper portion of said plate, respectively; and

wherein said pair of spikes are bent from said pair of axial legs of said upper portion of said plate, respectively.

16. The tack of claim 1, wherein said pair of spikes are parallel to said wall-engaging portion of said pin;

wherein said pair of spikes are spaced from said wall-engaging portion of said pin; and

wherein said pair of spikes straddle said wall-engaging portion of said pin.