There are two main types of washing lines. The first older version typically comprises a set of T-bars between which individual lines are strung. The second version is the carousel-type washing line in which a single post supports a rotary carousel.

Neither of these arrangements are particularly pleasing from an aesthetic point of view. Whilst it is possible to remove certain of the carousel-type washing lines when not in use, this is not a practical solution as they are particularly heavy and unwieldy, requiring a large storage area.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to the invention there is provided a stowable washing line comprising a housing, at least one support post extending from the housing, the support post having a fixed end arranged to be mounted foldably within the housing and a free end, and a line-supporting frame extending from the support post towards the free end thereof, the support post and line- supporting frame being collapsible between a prone stowed position in which they nest within the housing and a deployed position in which the post is upright and extends above the housing and the line-supporting frame extends outwardly from the post.

Preferably, the housing is adapted to be an underground housing, the housing being provided with a cover adapted to be substantially flush with ground level.

Conveniently, the housing is an elongate housing which extends substantially horizontally.

Typically, the line-supporting frame comprises a carousel assembly including a spider of support arms mounted pivotably to the free end of the support post and between which a web of lines extend, the support arms being foldable between the prone position in which the support arms are substantially parallel to the support post and the upright position in which the arms extend transversely relative to the support post.

Conveniently, the support arms are pivotably mounted to a guide member, the guide member being slidably mounted to the support post, wherein each support arm is supported by a strut member which is pivotally mounted to the support post and the support arm.

Advantageously, the cover of the housing is arranged to lock the support post in the upright position.

Preferably, the washing line includes deployment means for folding the support arms between the prone position in which the support arms are substantially parallel to the support post and the upright position in which the arms extend transversely relative to the support post.

In a first version of the invention, the deployment means comprises a first pulley wheel mounted to the support post operatively above the guide member and a pulley cord which is attachable to the guide member, the cord being attached to the guide member and arranged to pass over the first pulley wheel so that by moving the cord downwardly, the guide member can be moved upwardly so as to unfold the support arms.

Conveniently, the washing line includes a crawl mechanism for moving the cord downwardly, the crawl mechanism including a lever and a gripping element which are arranged to incrementally move the cord downwardly, so that by repeatedly operating the lever the cord can be moved downwardly so as to unfold the support arms.

In a second version of the invention, the deployment means comprises a second pulley wheel mounted to the support post operatively below the guide member, the pulley cord being arranged to pass over the first pulley wheel and under the second pulley wheel, so that by pulling upwardly on the cord, the guide member can be moved upwardly so as to unfold the support arms.

In a third version of the invention, the deployment means comprises a threaded worm arranged to be rotatably driven by a motor, the guide member including a complementary threaded receiving member for receiving the threaded worm so that depending upon the direction of rotation of the worm, the guide member can move either upwardly so as to unfold the support arms, or downwardly so as to fold the support arms into the prone position.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Figure 1 shows a perspective view of a washing line according to a first embodiment of the invention in a deployed position; Figures 2A to 2D show partly schematic side views of various steps involved in deploying the washing line of Figure 1; Figure 3 shows a perspective view of a washing line according to a second embodiment of the invention in a deployed position; Figure 4 shows a perspective view of a washing line according to a third embodiment of the invention in a deployed position; Figure 5 shows a cross-sectional side view of a crawl mechanism according to a fourth embodiment of the invention; and Figure 6 shows an exploded perspective view of the deploying mechanism shown in Figure 5.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS Referring first to Figure 1, a washing line 10 includes a horizontally extending, underground elongate rectangular housing 12, and a support post 14 having a fixed end which is pivotably mounted to the side walls 16 of the housing 12, and a free end. The support post 14 carries a carousel assembly 18 which comprises a spider of four upwardly angled support arms 20 between which a web of lines extend. The support arms 20 have pivoted ends connected to a guide member 22 which is slidably mounted to the support post 14. Four support struts 24 are in turn pivoted between an uppermost connection piece 26 and fixed pivot connections 28 located approximately mid-way along the support arms 20.

Referring now to Figure 2A, the washing line 10 is shown folded away in a prone, stowed position within the underground housing 12. The lid 30 of the housing 12 is opened, and the support post 14 is moved upwardly in the manner indicated in Figure 2B to the Figure 2C position in which it extends vertically so as to locate within a recess 32 adjacent the lid 30 of the housing.

The lid 30 is then closed so as to lock the support post 14 in an upright position. A pulley system comprises a pulley wheel 34 mounted to the uppermost connection piece 26 and a pulley cord 36 which passes over the pulley wheel 34. One end of the pulley cord 36 is connected to the guide member 22 and the other end to a handle 38. The carousel assembly 18 is deployed by pulling the handle 38 downwardly, thereby effectively raising the guide member 22 and causing the arms 20 to fan out into the Figure 2D deployed position.

A variation of the washing line shown in Figure 1 is shown in Figure 3 in which similar components have been indicated with similar reference numbers. The pulley system includes a further pulley wheel 40 under which the pulley cord 36 passes, with the carousel assembly 18 being deployed by pulling the handle 38 upwards and sideways, in the direction of arrow 41. An advantage of this pulley system is that the handle 38 is more accessible, and can be operated from outside the carousel assembly 18.

Referring now to Figure 4, a further variation of the washing line of Figure 1 is shown. The washing line 10 includes a worm gear comprising a threaded rod 42 which is rotatably driven by an electric motor 44. The threaded rod 42 passes through a nut 46 which is mounted to the guide member 22.

Depending on the direction of rotation of the rod 42, the nut 46 and the guide member 22 will move either upwardly in order to deploy the carousel assembly 18 or downwardly in order to bring the support arms 20 substantially parallel to the support post 14 to enable the washing line 10 to be stowed away in the housing 12.

Figures 5 and 6 show yet a further variation of the washing line of Figure 1 in which a crawl mechanism 48 is attached to the guide member 22 of the washing line. The crawl mechanism 48 comprises a carriage 50 having apertures 52 and 54 defined in the upper and lower portions of the carriage 50 respectively, the apertures allowing a pulley rod 54 to pass therethrough.

The crawl mechanism 48 further includes a lever 56 which is pivotally mounted to side walls 58 and 60 by means of a pivot axle 62. A gripping element 64 includes an aperture 66 which allows the pulley rod 54 to pass therethrough and a pair of downwardly turned projections 68 which define a recess 70 therebetween. The pivot axle 62 carries a torsion spring 72, with one end of the spring 72 abutting against a rear surface of the lever 56, and the other end abutting against the gripping element 64, within the recess 70.

To deploy the carousel assembly 18, the lever 56 is pushed in the direction of the support post 14, as shown by arrow 74. This results in the gripping element 64 moving from the position shown at 76 to the position shown by broken outline 78, thereby simultaneously moving the pulley rod 54 downwardly. By repeatedly pushing the lever 56 towards the support post 14, the guide member 22 is raised, resulting in the carousel assembly 18 being deployed, as previously described. A release element 80 is spring biased between the gripping element 64 and the base of the carriage 50 and includes an aperture 82 through which the pulley rod 54 passes. In order to stow the carousel assembly 18, the release element 80 is pushed in the direction indicated by arrow 84, and the lever 56 is simultaneously rotated in the direction shown by arrow 86. This allows the pulley rod 54 to be pulled upwardly in order to collapse the carousel assembly 18.

A major advantage of the stowable washing line of the invention is that it can be folded safely out of sight within a relatively compact housing when not in use, thereby requiring no separate storage space or area.