US2543900A - Television antenna bracket - Google Patents

Description

March 6, 1951 F. E. DUDLEY ETAL TELEVISION ANTENNA BRACKET 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Jan. 17, 1949 TORNEYS March 6, 1951 DUDLEY ETAL .2,5 43,900

TELEVISION ANTENNA BRACKET Filed Jan. 17, 1949 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTORS Hank]; Duchy A.Dcclle March 6, 1951 F. E. DUDLEY ETAL 2,543,900

TELEVISION ANTENNA BRACKET Filed Jan. 17, 1949 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTORS Cl Patented Mar. 6, 1951 TELEVISION ANTENNA BRACKET Frank E. Dudley, Philadelphia, Pa., and Roy A. Dudley, North Kenova, Ohio Application January 17, 1949, Serial No. 71,286

3 Claims.

The present invention relates to television antenna clamps.

A purpose of the invention is to permit support of a television antenna from the'chimney of a building without the necessity of wrapping bands or wires around the chimney, and without dam-. age to the chimney.

A further purpose is to permit installation of a television antenna to a chimney even under conditions in which it is difiicult for aworkman to find support and necessary to work with only one hand available.

A further purpose is to avoid the necessity of carrying extra equipment such as strap tightening tools to the roof in installing a television antenna to a chimney.

A further purpose is to secure a television antenna in a position in which vibration will be minimized.

A further purpose is to clear any overhang on the wall of a chimney.

Further purposes will appear in the specification and in the claims.

In the drawings we have chosen to illustrate one only of the numerous embodiments in which the invention may appear, choosing the forms shown from the standpoints of convenience in illustration, satisfactory operation and clear demonstration of the principles involved.

Figure 1 is a perspective of a chimney to which the antenna clamp of the invention has been applied.

Figure 2 is an enlarged front elevation of the clamp of Figure 1 omitting the antenna.

Figure 3 is an enlarged fragmentary top plan view of the clamp of Figure 1.

Figure 4 is an enlarged fragmentary side elevation of the clamp of Figure 1, with the chimney Describin in illustration but not in limitation and referring to the drawings:

In the prior art considerable time and expense have been involved in the installation oi an outside television antenna. On roofs it has been difficult to find satisfactory attachments, and the practice has been adopted of securing antenna to chimneys by wires, bands, or the like. This is often difiicult and dangerous, especially as the position of the workmen is frequently very precarious, and in many instances he can only employ one hand at a time to work, requiring the use of the other hand to hold his position.

The attachment by bands and strapping has necessitated bringing strap tightening devices to the top of the chimney which is often difiicult.

At best such attachment means are subject to corrosion and early failure from this cause.

The present invention is designed to make attachment to a chimney more easily and cheaply, with greater safety to the workman and with more assurance of permanence. The antenna is very well supported against vibration even in a high Wind.

As best seen in Figure l, a chimney 20 is provided with an external bead 2| near the top. A television antenna 22 of tubular metal is supported in upright position fromthe chimney by a clamp 23 in accordance with the invention.

. The tubular antenna extends into the upper open end of a socket 24 having a bottom drainage opening 25. Set screws 26 extending through the wall of the socket permit gripping of the antenna.

At the mouth of the socket is located a lug 21 desirably integral therewith, having a transverse opening 28. A ground clamp, lightning arrester or transmission line clamp 29 of well known type is mounted on the lug with the ground clamp portion 3| spanning the lug and a bolt 32 passing through the opening 28 and through the clamp to secure it in place. A transmission line 33 having conducters on each side of an insulating central portion as well known extends through the "arrester, connected to the antenna in well known manner, and extending down to the television set.

Desirably integral with the socket and extending transversely thereto preferably near the upper open end of the socket is a bar 34 of sufficient length to bridge the wall of the chimney and the bead 2|. Slidable on the bar, and havingsuffficient width Where it engages the bar to prevent undue rocking, is an outer clamp 35 which preferably extends downwardly generally parallel to the socket at 35 from a slider portion 31 and then diverges into bifurcated arms 38. At the lower or outer ends of the arms, extending transversely to the arms, are clampin screws 40 threaded into the arms of the outer clamp. These screws are preferably located below the bead of the chimney as shown in Figure 4; to give better anchorage-against upward movementu- 8 inclusive.

On the opposite or inside of the chimney wall is located an inner clamp 4| having a slider portion 42 which slides along the bar 34 when the clamp is released, but has sufiicient length of engagement so that when the clamp is tight it will hold firmly without undue rocking. Experience indicates that it is not necessary to employ a set screw to hold the sliding portion 42 at a given position on the bar. The inner clamp 4| extends in the same direction as the outer clamp (downwardly from the bar), provided With wings 43 extending laterally at points below the slider portion, and has threaded therethrough levelling screws 44 which can be adjusted to allow for irregularity of the inside of the chimney wall.

The lower end of the socket has a transverse inwardly directed projection 45 which fits into .a slot 66 between the bifurcated arms 38 of the outer clamp, thus locking the socket firmly against rocking or vibrating about the bar as an axis.

In operation the outside clamp is first slid on the bar until it has travelled to its position adjoining the socket. The bar is then conveniently extended across the top of the chimney wall, after which the inner clamp, if not already in place, is slid along the bar until it engages the inside of the Wall. If the inner bar does not sit squarely due to unevenness of the wall, the levelling screws 64 are adjusted until proper seating is obtained. Once such seating is obtained the clamp is tightened by screwing the clamping screws 66 against the outside of the wall, thus tending to spread the outer ends of the arms and firmly frictionally engaging the sliders on the bar.

The clamp is now in position for mounting the antenna, which is placed in the socket and held by the set screws if necessary. The lightning arrester, if not already installed, is then mounted on the lug, and the transmission line placed in position. In view of the fact that the chimney does not constitute a ground, it is commonly necessary to run a ground connection not shown from the clamp 3i to a suitable ground such as a soil pipe.

The material of which the clamp is made may vary to suit the requirements of the user, although it has been found to be very satisfactory to manufacture the clamp out of aluminum alloy or castings.

It will be evident that the clamp of the invention can be applied to a wide variety of constructions of chimneys and the like.

In some instances it may be preferable to use a clamp form of socket as shown in Figures 6 to This has the advantage of being adjustable to various sizes of antenna and of permitting more positive support and attachment to any given size of antenna. In this form of socket a socket body 4! is mounted on the bar 34 in the same manner as the socket is mounted in the other form, and carries a projection 45' for interlocking with one of the clamp arms at the bottom of the socket. At the topand bottom on either side the socket body has lugs 48 provided with holes 56, which engage a cooperating 4 to draw the socket parts tight against the antenna at the top and bottom.

At the bottom of the socket body a bottom wall 56 extends across the body to engage and seat the bottom end of the antenna. There is ample space for drainage around the bottom wall.

The form of Figures 6 to 8 is assembled in the same manner as that of Figures 1 to 5 inclusive, except that the antenna is clamped by the socket clamps rather than by the set screws.

In view of our invention and disclosure variations and modifications to meet individual whim or particular need will doubtless become evident to others skilled in the art, to obtain all or part of the benefits of our invention without copying the structure shown, and we, therefore, claim all such insofar as they fall within the reasonable spirit and scope of our claims.

Having thus described our invention what we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a television antenna clamp, a socket; a bar secured to the socket and extending transversely thereof, an outside clamp mounted on the bar near the socket and extending transversely of the bar and longitudinally of the socket, having diverging spaced arms at the end of the outside clamp remote from the bar, screw clamps on the arms and an inside clamp slidable along the bar, lockable by, clamping pressure of the screw clamps in any sliding position and extending transversely of the bar in the same direction as the outside clamp.

2. In a television antenna clamp, a socket, a bar secured to the socket and extending transversely thereof, an outside clamp slidably mounted on the bar, extending transversely of the bar and longitudinally of the socket and having an interlocking slot on the side toward the socket, an interlocking projection extending from the socket and engaging the slot in the outside clamp, screw clamps on the outside clamp and an inside clamp slidable along the bar, lockable by clamping pressure in any sliding position and extending transversely of the bar in the same direction as the outside clamp.

3. In a television antenna clamp, a socket, a bar secured to the socket and extending transversely thereof, an outside clamp mounted on the bar near the socket and extending transversely of the bar and longitudinally of the socket, having diverging spaced arms, screw clamps on the arms, an inside clamp slidable along the bar, lockable by clamping pressure in any sliding position and extending transversely of the bar in the same direction as the outside clamp and levelling screws on the inside clamp. 1

FRANK E. DUDLEY. ROY A. DUDLEY.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 208,732 Gurley Oct. 8, 1878 970,655 Sheble Sept. 20, 1910 1,532,688 Feuerstein Apr. 7, 1925 1,664,161 Considine Mar. 27, 1928 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date Germany Feb. 13, 1921

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