The present invention among other things relates to a method for safely securing an article of clothing or accessory, and to a device for safely securing articles of clothing and accessories.

A well-known problem when leaving articles of clothing and accessories in publicly accessible areas like cloakrooms, changing rooms and cafes is that said articles of clothing and accessories have a tendency to disappear without the permission of their rightful owners.

The use of locked spaces for storing articles of clothing and accessories, so-called "lockers", offers a possibility, but lockers take up much space and in addition are clothing-unfriendly because of their usually compact dimensions.

A standard chain lock is certainly not an elegant solution because articles of clothing hung from it partly hang on the floor and in any case cannot be hung in a way desirable for clothing whereby the shape of the articles of clothing or accessories is not compromised.

There is therefore a need for a device and a method for safely securing articles of clothing and accessories that compromises the shape of the articles of clothing as little as possible.

The present invention relates to such a method for safely securing articles of clothing and accessories, and to devices for such securing.

The definition of articles of clothing should be broadly interpreted and relates to among other things but not exclusively coats, jackets, sweaters, overalls, cardigans, (over)trousers and the like. Accessories include among other things but not exclusively handbags, shoulder bags, rucksacks, crash helmets and sports bags. Every article of clothing and every accessory containing a hole is suitable to be safely secured with the present invention. The hole of a jacket can for instance be the sleeve or a buttonhole. The hole of a bag can for instance be the closed loop formed by the bag and an attached handle.

In a simple form the device comprises a securing instrument extending in a longitudinal direction with a first and a second end, like a rigid or flexible bar or cable that can be inserted through a hole in the article of clothing or accessory to be safely secured, in such a way that the first and second end are each outside the hole. Both ends are then effectively connected to each other and to a support. At the same time, after, or before, the article of clothing or accessory to be safely secured is attached to a support by a means of suspension with which said support is provided.

A support can for instance be a strong plank provided with a means of attachment for the first and second end of the securing instrument. It goes without saying that the support is preferably firmly attached to a wall, ceiling or heavy object.

The figures in the Examples illustrate a number of possible implementations of the device according to the invention.

One of the advantages of the present invention is that by securing the article of clothing or accessory to a means of suspension to the support, said article of clothing or accessory retains its shape and is nevertheless safely secured.

The means of suspension can be simple. For flexible articles of clothing like cardigans or for accessories like shoulder bags or handbags a simple clothes hook may suffice to which the suspension loop of the jacket or the handles of the bag are attached. For more expensive articles of clothing like topcoats, leather coats and coats that are more susceptible to losing shape, a classic clothes hanger that is attached to the support can for instance be used successfully. In order to bring about the effective connection and to secure it against unwanted release after the connection has come about a multitude of facilities known to a person skilled in the art can be used, like locks and closures. Both ends of the securing instrument can for instance be provided with an eye, in such a way that both eyes are connected to each other and to the support by a classic padlock. Connection to the support can for instance take place because for this purpose the support has also been provided with an eye. A more elegant solution is offered when the first end is already inseparably connected to the support, so that only the second end still has to be attached to the support, which then brings about the effective connection between the first and the second end and the support. This can be done simply by providing both the second end and the support with an eye and connecting the two eyes by means of a padlock. A faster connection is obtained when the second end is provided with an end that locks into a locking mechanism inside the support. Such locking mechanisms are known to a person skilled in the art.

Practical is in particular a solution whereby a flexible securing instrument is applied. Such a flexible securing instrument can for instance be a thin cable, or a semi-flexible instrument comprising rigid parts connected to each other through flexible couplings.

When the flexible securing instrument for instance consists of a thin steel wire, the steel wire can then be stored inside the support by means of for instance a volute spring system. When the wire is in use, such a spring system also prevents an unnecessarily large section of the wire from dangling free, because it keeps the wire somewhat taut.

In principle, the flexible securing instrument has no maximum length, but in many cases more than two metres would be unnecessary or impractical. In many cases a length of 0.5 - 1.5 metres will suffice. A first embodiment of the operating procedure comprises the steps of a) inserting a securing instrument extending in a longitudinal direction with a first and a second end through a hole of the article of clothing or accessory, in such a way that the first and second end of the securing instrument are each on one side outside said hole b) effectively connecting the first end, the second end and a support. c) securing the article of clothing or accessory to the support by a means of suspension with which said support is provided. For bringing about the effective connection a multitude of closures can be used.

For instance a standard padlock as known to a person skilled in the art can be used, as described above.

Instances of other closures are given in the examples. Usually, the lock or other locking mechanism will be opened and closed by means of a key.

The use of a code lock has the advantage over a key lock that no keys can be lost.

When financial compensation is desired for the use of the device, a coin lock can be used or a lock that is operated by means of a payment card. Such locks are well known to a person skilled in the art and are readily commercially available.

As desired the securing instrument can be either rigid or flexible. The applied material is non-critical, provided that it is sufficiently strong to create a safe vandal-proof securing.

The securing instrument does not necessarily have to be effectively connected to the support directly. It is for instance also possible that the first end of the securing instrument is attached to a wall and is thus effectively connected to the support via the wall, or even via that wall and a floor or ceiling. Another embodiment of the invention relates to a device for safely securing an article of clothing or accessory, comprising a) a securing instrument extending in a longitudinal direction with a first and a second end that can be inserted through a hole of the article of clothing or accessory, in such a way that the first and the second end of the securing instrument are each on one side outside said hole b) a facility for effectively connecting the first end, the second end and a support. c) a means of suspension attached to the support.

The examples illustrate a number of implementations of the present invention.

Examples; Example 1

Figures 1 - 8 illustrate a number of examples of a device for safely securing articles of clothing and accessories.

Figure 1 shows a possible implementation of the invention. Figure 2 shows a side view of figure 1. Figure 3 shows the bottom view of figure 1, but the means of attachment 5, here embodied by a flexible cable that can be pulled from a retractor mechanism that is hidden inside the support, is not shown in order to keep the figure clear. This cable 5 leaves the padlock from opening 9.

As shown in figures 1, 2, and 3, the device contains a support 3 to which a means of suspension 4, here embodied by a simple clothes hook, is attached and a locking system that is combined by a flexible cable 5 the first end of which is connected to the support, a hole 8 into which the second end of cable 5 can be inserted, a code lock system with wheels (2) where a code is shown, a button 7 that by being kept depressed (when cable 5 is not inserted into hole 8) enables the setting of a code and a button 1 that can be depressed when the correct code has been set. The support also contains holes 6 through which the padlock can be attached to a wall or other object with for instance screws or nails. Another possibility for setting a code is by automatically setting the code that is shown at the moment that cable 5 is inserted into opening 8 as the code that is confirmed by depressing button 1. Based on the latter method for setting a code the device operates as follows: the user sets the desired code and pulls cable 5 from the support and inserts the second end of cable 5 through for instance the sleeve or another hole of the jacket or an accessory and inserts the second end of cable 5 into opening 8 after which the object is hung from hook 4. The user now turns the wheels to shield the code against people with wrong intentions. Because users may forget the combination of the figures on the wheels 2 the lock also contains another, fixed, combination for opening the lock.

In the implementation as shown in figures 1, 2, 3, cable 5 can be replaced by a steel bracket 1. This implementation is shown in figures 4 and 5. In this case the bracket can for instance be interpreted as the bracket of a classic padlock.

The code system with wheels can also be replaced by a classic key lock system 5, 6, as illustrated in figures 4, 5. The steel bracket 1 (figures 4, 5) is then released on 1 or 2 sides, or cable 5 (figure 1) is released on one or both ends, when key 5 is inserted into lock 6 and turned.

The steel bracket 1 can be used directly as securing instrument.

However, preferably the bracket serves to effectively connect a second end of a cable 2 in figures 4 and 5 to the support. The cable hereby functions as securing instrument.

In this example cable 2 (figures 4, 5) is inserted through a hole in a jacket or accessory, whereupon the first and second end are effectively connected to the support and to each other by means of the bracket. Example 2

Optional for the implementations shown in figures 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 is a payment system that only enables the use of the lock after payment of a specific amount of money through for instance coins inserted into the lock or by means of electronic payment through for instance a payment card or credit card. This mechanism is explained below and illustrated in figures 6, 7, and 8.

Figure 6 shows the front view of such an implementation of the invention. Figure 7 shows the side view of figure 6.

Figure 8 shows the top view of figure 6.

In the implementation according to figures 6 and 7 users can insert money into the intended slot 5. This money is collected inside the lock and when the specified amount has been paid, steel bracket 7 is at least on one end disconnected from the support. Next the user sets a code with the buttons 4. Optionally, there is a display 3 where users can read the code that they are entering or that helps users to operate the lock by means of texts on this display. Another option is an acceptance button 1 or a correction button 2 with which an entered code can be accepted or removed after which a new code can be entered and accepted. By opening compartment 10 the owner of the device can remove the takings in coins from the lock.

It goes without saying that in this implementation steel bracket 7 can be replaced by any other securing instrument according to the present invention. As illustrated in figure 8 it is also possible to insert a digital payment card into the intended slot 9. Payment can take place by means of display 3, buttons 4, acceptance button 1 and correction button 2. It goes without saying that depending on the wishes of the owner of the device payment can be set in such a way that either bringing about the effective connection between support and securing instrument, or again undoing this connection, can be selected.

The invention is not restricted to the embodiments described herein. It will be understood that many variants are possible.

Other such variants will be apparent for the person skilled in the art and are considered to lie within the scope of the invention as defined in the following claims.