Garment drying rack

Abstract

A garment drying rack having a hub and at least three elongated legs pivotally mounted at their inner end to the hub. The legs are movable between an operable position in which the legs extend radially outwardly from the hub and a storage position in which the legs are generally parallel to and adjacent each other. An actuator having a gear rack on its outer surface is movably positioned within the hub between a first and a second position. The gear rack on the actuator cooperates with a ratchet formed at the inner end of each leg so that movement of the actuator from its first and to its second position simultaneously pivots the legs from the storage position and to their operable position in unison with each other.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0001] I. Field of the Invention [0002] The present invention relates to a rack for drying garments. [0003] II. Description of Related Art [0004] It is well known that delicate clothing items are oftentimes damaged if dried by a conventional clothes dryer after washing. For that reason, many people prefer to air dry such delicate items after washing in order to protect the delicate garments from damage. [0005] In order to air dry such delicate garments, such garments are typically hung over a clothesline. This method of air drying the garments, however, presents its own set of difficulties. [0006] More specifically, due to inclement or cold weather, it may be necessary to mount the clothesline inside the dwelling or other building in order to dry the garments. However, in many such dwellings or other buildings, there is simply insufficient room within the laundry facilities to mount such a clothesline. [0007] In addition, since many laundry facilities are...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

"The present invention provides a garment drying rack that overcomes the disadvantages of prior art. The rack comprises a hub and three elongated legs that pivot between an operable position and a storage position. An actuator is movably mounted in the hub and a gear rack on the outer periphery of the actuator cooperates with ratchets formed at the inner ends of the legs to pivotally move the legs in unison with each other. Each leg has an elongated support that is pivotal between an open position and a collapsed position. A recess is formed at the outer end of each leg to receive a free end of one support. The rack includes two or more tiers for supporting garments to be dried."

Problems solved by technology

This method of air drying the garments, however, presents its own set of difficulties.

However, in many such dwellings or other buildings, there is simply insufficient room within the laundry facilities to mount such a clothesline.

In addition, since many laundry facilities are relatively small, even if a clothesline can be mounted or strung within the facility, the amount of clothesline available to actually hang the delicate garments is necessarily limited.

When this occurs, the person doing the laundry oftentimes dries the garments in stages which necessarily prolongs the overall laundry and drying process.

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