A STORAGE ASSEMBLY

FIELD OF INVENTION

The present invention relates to storing goods that are related in purpose and usage. The present invention has particular but not exclusive application for organizing and storing clothing accessories and personal accessories. In the body of the specification, reference is made to the storage of jewelry, bags, clothing accessories and personal accessories by way of example only.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

An assortment of hats, handbags and other clothing accessories are often haphazardly stored on shelves or in drawers within a wardrobe or on the floor. Wardrobes are often overcrowded and as a result of items being stored together in close proximity, the items are often damaged. For example, a hat can be deformed when heavier items such as large handbags are squashed against them. Expensive handbags can be deformed and damaged when stored on shelves or on the floor. Scarves can be easily snagged by belt buckles when stored in the same drawer.

The storage of jewelry also requires careful attention. For example, when beads and chains are stored together in the same drawer, they become entangled with one another and are troublesome to separate.

In order to reduce damage to clothing and personal accessories, the delicate items can be separated from the heavier items. Jewelry stands in different shapes and configurations exist for the storage of jewelry when not in use. These stands however vary in their success in keeping the pieces of jewelry from being entangled. Individual pieces of jewelry can also be stored separately by placing in separate

compartments of a drawer. This method of organizing personal accessories separately requires substantial amounts of storage space which is often not available. It also makes items difficult to locate and access.

Alternatively, items like hats can be stored on a hat or coat stand that has arms or hooks designed for hanging hats. Since a coat or hat stand is often quite large the stand may not be fully utilized. These coat or hat stands cannot be used for storing items other than for coats and hats.

A utility stand for a law enforcement officer is described in US 6749073. The utility stand is specifically designed to store the uniform and law enforcement equipment such as a radio, ammunition and utility belt. The function of the utility stand described in US 6749073 is specific for and limited to law enforcement officers.

There does not appear to be any suitable storage device that stores and organizes a person's clothing and personal accessories that they would use regularly.

OBJECT OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to provide a storage assembly that overcomes at least in part one or more of the above mentioned disadvantages.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In one aspect the present invention broadly resides in a storage assembly including one or more elongate support members that form or can form a single upright member, said single upright member has a plurality of upright apertures;

mounting means to mount the single upright member; and a plurality of holder members connectable to the single upright member, each of said holder members is positionable and connectable to any one of the upright apertures wherein the one or more elongate support members and mounting means are arranged to form a desired configuration with the modular and interchangeable holder members.

The desired configuration includes but not limited to organizing and storing clothing accessories, personal accessories, jewelry, bags, shoes, belts, soaps and toiletries, craft materials, compact discs and DVD, and hardware items and tools. The plurality of holder members preferably includes one or more lateral arms, one or more holding panels, one or more trays, one or more carousels or a combination thereof. Preferably, a combination of different types of the above mentioned holder members are connectable to the upright member.

The lateral arm is preferably a rod that can pass through the upright aperture to connect to the upright member.

The lateral arm preferably has a stopper to prevent accidental dislodgement of items from the lateral arm. The stopper is preferably positionable at an end of the lateral arm. Preferably there is a stopper at each end of the lateral arm. Preferably the stopper is a flat disc. The lateral arm preferably has a covering that can surround a section of the rod. The covering is preferably made of a resiliently deformable material. When the rod is connected, the covering more preferably is positioned on a section of the rod between the stopper and the upright member to substantially prevent movement of the rod relative to the upright member.

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Preferably each of the one or more lateral arms is a rod that can pass through the upright aperture to connect to the upright member, each lateral arm has a stopper positioned at an end to prevent accidental dislodgement and a covering that can surround a section of the rod between the stopper and the upright member when connected to substantially prevent movement of the rod relative to the upright member.

The holding panel and tray are preferably attachable to the lateral arm.

The holding panel preferably has a panel mounting that is slideable on the lateral arm. Preferably, the holding panel has an aperture or a recess to hold an item for storage.

The tray preferably has a tray arm with an arm aperture. The arm aperture is preferably shaped to allow the lateral arm to pass there through for attachment purposes. Preferably, the tray has an arm mounting that is slideable on the lateral arm.

In the embodiment where the holder member is a carousel, the carousel preferably has a central collar to locate the carousel on the upright member. The central collar preferably has a positioning portion to fix the carousel to the upright member and a movable portion to allow rotation of the carousel around the upright member.

The movable portion of the carousel preferably has two or more differently sized rings that are spaced apart in order to accommodate and store items. The carousel can be designed to store items such as shoes, hats, toiletries, craft materials, CDs, DVDs or tools. With respect to the storage of shoes the carousel preferably has two differently sized rings that are spaced apart so that when a shoe

is placed to rest on both rings it is angled downwardly and outwardly from the central collar at substantially 45 degrees. With the storage of other items the movable portion can be inverted and the two differently sized rings are angled substantially 45 degrees downwardly toward the central collar. In either position the movable portion preferably allows the positioning of buckets, containers, trays and hooks on the rings to allow storage of smaller or shaped items.

The positioning portion is preferably fixed to the upright member by a positioning pin that passes through an upright aperture. A positioning pin is preferably a threaded bolt and nut arrangement. Each of the one or more elongate support members is preferably a pole.

Preferably, one pole is connected to another pole to form an upright post. The poles are preferably connected by a connector pin. A connector pin is preferably a threaded bolt and nut arrangement.

The connector pin preferably allows an item to be attached to the upright member. The connector pin preferably has a stopper as described above.

In one embodiment of the invention the mounting means includes a base member to support the upright member. Preferably, the base member provides a floor mounting.

In another embodiment the mounting means includes a suspending member that enables the upright member to be suspended from an overhead support. The suspending member preferably has a substantially hook shape and provides a mounting from a hanger or hanging rail.

In another aspect the present invention broadly resides in a kit for a storage assembly as described above and including one or more elongate support members,

a plurality of holder members and a mounting member where the mounting member may be a base member or a suspending member.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In order that the present invention can be more readily understood reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings which illustrate preferred embodiments of the invention and wherein:

Figure 1 is a diagrammatic view of a storage assembly according to a first embodiment of the present invention; Figure 2 is a diagrammatic partial view of the storage assembly of Figure 1 showing an exploded view of the lateral arm;

Figure 3 is a diagrammatic view of a sunglass holding panel; Figure 4 is a diagrammatic view of an earring holding panel; Figure 5 is a diagrammatic view of a ring holding panel; Figure 6 is a diagrammatic view of an accessories tray;

Figure 7 is a diagrammatic view of a shoe carousel;

Figure 8 is a photograph of the storage assembly of a second embodiment shown storing a variety of clothing accessories and personal accessories;

Figure 9 is a diagrammatic view of a storage assembly according to a third embodiment of the present invention;

Figure 10 is a diagrammatic view of a storage assembly according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention; and

Figure 11 is a diagrammatic view of a hanger mounting of the storage assembly of Figure 9 or Figure 10.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS With reference to Figures 1 and 2 there is shown a first embodiment of a storage assembly 10 that is a storage stand 10 for organizing and storing clothing, clothing accessories and personal accessories. The storage stand 10 has three support poles 11 connected to form a single post 12, several lateral arms 13 forming the holder components and a floor mounting 14.

Each of the support poles 1 1 is a hollow tube and one support pole 11 is fixed to another support pole by a connector pin 15. The connector pin 15 is passed through an end portion of each of the two support poles 11 to prevent the support poles from moving relative to one another. The connector pin 15 also allows an item to be attached to the post 12. The height of the post 12 can be adjusted by varying the number of support poles 11 that are connected.

Each support pole 11 has several upright apertures 16 used for attaching a lateral arm 13 to the support pole 11. The lateral arm 13 is a hollow rod 13 that can pass through an upright aperture 16. The number and arrangement of the lateral arms 13 can be adjusted to suit the desired configuration and organization of the stored items.

Each of the lateral arms 13 has a stopper 18 that can be fixed to each end 20 of the lateral arm 13. The stopper 18 has a flat disc 21 and a screw threaded portion 22 that is screwed into the end 20 of the lateral arm 13. The flat disc 21 prevents an item such as a tie or handbag from slipping off the end of the lateral arm 13.

A rubber-like covering 24 is positioned about the lateral arm 13. The covering 24 extends between the stopper 18 and the post 12 thereby preventing movement of the arm 13 relative to the post 12. The covering 24 serves as a cushion and thereby reduces the fatigue on hung items such as the handles of handbags.

With reference to Figures 3 to 8, there is shown several other different types of holder components. These holder components are a sunglass holding panel 30, an earring holding panel 40, a ring holding panel 50, an accessories tray 60, and a shoe carousel 70. The sunglass holding panel 30 shown in Figures 3 has a panel mounting 31 and a panel portion 32 that is fastened to the panel mounting 31. The panel mounting 31 enables the sunglass holding panel 30 to slide onto any one of the lateral arms 13 of the storage stand 10. The panel portion 32 has slots 33 that are spaced apart to prevent the overlapping of sunglasses held in each slot 33. A sunglass is held on the panel portion 32 by folding the arm of the sunglass over a periphery 34 of a slot 33.

An earring holding panel 40 shown in Figure 4 has an earring panel mounting 41 that is attachable to any one of the lateral arms 13 in the same way as the panel mounting 31 of the sunglass holding panel 30 described above. The earring panel mounting 41 has an earring panel portion 42 that is fastened to the earring panel mounting 41 and extends downwardly from a lateral arm 13 when the earring holding panel 40 is attached to the lateral arm 13. The earring panel portion 42 has earring apertures 43 and each earring aperture 43 can accommodate a stud, hoop or clip of an earring. The earring apertures 43 are arranged in several rows. There is a slot 44, 45, 46 beneath some of the rows of earring apertures 43. The slots 44, 45, 46 are of different sizes and allow earrings of various styles, sizes or ornamentation to be stored unobstructed by the sides of earring panel portion 42 thereby preventing abrasion or distortion of the earrings.

A ring holding panel 50 shown in Figure 5 has a ring panel mounting 51 and a ring panel portion 52 that is fastened to the ring panel mounting 51. The ring holding

panel 50 is similar to the sunglass holding panel 30 and the earring holding panel 40 described above except that the ring panel portion 52 includes a resiliency deformable pad 53 that has several elongate recesses 54. The pad 53 is made of foam and allows each recess 54 to be enlarged by separating opposed recess perimeter sides while having sufficient resiliency to hold a ring securely between the foam surrounding each recess 54.

An accessories tray 60 shown in Figure 6 has two tray arms 61 each with an arm aperture 62 through which a lateral arm 13 of the storage stand 10 passes when the tray is attached to the lateral arm 13. In the embodiment shown in Figure 6, the tray arms 61 are fixed to an arm mounting 63 that can slide onto a lateral arm 13. The tray 60 may have dividers 64 to form compartments in the tray 60.

A shoe carousel 70 shown in Figure 7 has a central collar 71 to position the carousel 70 on the support pole 11 of the storage stand 10. The central collar 71 has a fixed portion 72 and a rotatable portion 73. The fixed portion 72 has a positioning pin 74 that passes through the upright aperturei 6 to fix the carousel 70 to the support pole 11. The rotatable portion 73 allows the carousel 70 to rotate around the support pole 11. The carousel 70 has two differently sized rings 75, 76 that are spaced apart so that when a shoe is placed to rest on both rings 75, 76 the shoe forms a substantially 45 degree angle with the horizontal. The shoe is held at an angle on the carousel to prevent the shoe from sliding off and to allow the shoe to be stored and viewed face up for easy selection and to eliminate the possibility of damage that may be caused by other forms of hanging shoe storage. In other embodiments of the carousel, not shown in the figures, the carousel can be designed to store other items such as hats, toiletries, craft materials, CDs, DVDs or tools. For

example, the carousel can have hooks, buckets or a carousel tray for organizing the various items.

With reference to Figure 8, there is shown second embodiment of the storage assembly that is a storage stand 80 having a combination of different holder components fixed to an upright post 82. The upright post 82 is formed by connecting several support poles 81. The storage stand 80 has a sunglass holding panel 83, an earring holding panel 84, a ring holding panel 85, an accessories tray 86 and several lateral arms 87. These holder components are similar to the similar named holder components described above. Since the various holder components are interchangeable, the storage stand can be assembled to suit the purpose of the user. The versatility of the storage stand 80 enables a user to organize and store various items in a single place. The user can therefore easily access and locate the items. Furthermore, the items are stored in a manner that will maintain the items in good condition. For example, handbags can be hung on the lateral arms 87 to maintain their shape and reduce damage caused by a buckle or clasp of one handbag pushing against the side of another handbag. Jewelry chains and beads can also be hung on the connector pins 88 to avoid entanglement with one other.

With reference to Figure 9 there is shown a third embodiment of the support assembly that is a hanger 90 for hanging in a wardrobe. The hanger 90 has a support pole 91 , two lateral arms 92 and a hanger mounting 93 to suspend the hanger 90 from a wardrobe rail 94. The hanger mounting 93 as shown in Figure 1 1 has a U-shaped or hook shaped hanging component 95 and an attachment component 96 that has attachment aperture 97. The attachment component 96 can be attached to the end of the support pole 91 and the hanger mounting 93 is

connected to the support pole 91 by passing a connector pin 98 through the support pole 91 and attachment aperture 97. The U-shaped hanging component 95 prevents the hanger 90 from rotating in the wardrobe.

The hanger 90 has several upright apertures 99 and each upright aperture 99 can be used for attaching a lateral arm 92 to the support pole 91. The lateral arms 92 are similar to the lateral arms as described above. The other holder components described above can also be interchangeably attached to the support pole 91 in a manner similar to that also described above. The versatility of the hanger 90 provides a user with the ability to coordinate their clothing accessories with the clothes in their wardrobe, for example coordination according to colour.

With reference to Figure 10 there is shown a fourth embodiment of the support assembly that is a hanger 100 for hanging in a taller wardrobe. The hanger 100 is similar to the hanger 90 described above except that two support poles 101 are connected to form a longer hanging post 102.

ADVANTAGES

An advantage of a preferred embodiment of the storage assembly includes having modular parts that can be assembled to adjust the size and arrangement of the formed storage assembly. Another advantage of a preferred embodiment is having interchangeable holder components that are used to store a variety of items in a single place. The interchangeable holder components include a lateral arm for hanging handbags, hats, belts, scarves, watches, bracelets, bangles and ties, various holding panels for jewelry and sunglasses, an accessories tray for keys, wallets, cameras, ipods, mp3

players, watches and mobile phones and a carousel for shoes, hats, toiletries, craft materials, CDs, DVDs or tools.

A further advantage of a preferred embodiment is that the arrangement of the interchangeable holder components is adjustable to suit the layout of the stored items. For example, the lateral arms can be arranged at different heights along the support poles so that items hung from one lateral arm do not overlap with items hung from another lateral arm.

In short, the preferred embodiment of the storage assembly allows a multiplicity of items to be stored concurrently; customized to suit user's needs; makes items easy to find, access and select; reduce potential damage, crease or scratch; reduce potential tangles; maximize storage space; can be free standing or hanging; and enables the creation of a decorative display to showcase items for outfit co-ordination.

VARIATIONS

It will of course be realised that while the foregoing has been given by way of illustrative example of this invention, all such and other modifications and variations thereto as would be apparent to persons skilled in the art are deemed to fall within the broad scope and ambit of this invention as is herein set forth. Throughout the description and claims this specification the word "comprise" and variations of that word such as "comprises" and "comprising", are not intended to exclude other additives, components, integers or steps.