US868817A - Napkin-holder. - Google Patents

Description

' PATENTED OUT. 22, 1907.

0. D. SMITH. NAPKIN HOLDER. APPLICATION FILED FEB. 26, 1907;

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THE NORRIS PETERS co. WASHINGTON, n. c.

CHARLES D. SMITH,

PATENT OFFICE.

OF PARIS, ILLINOIS.

NAPKIN-HOLDER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 22, 1907 Application filed February 26, 1907. Serial No. 359,400.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, CHARLES D. Snrrn, a citizen of the United States, residing at Paris,'in the county of Edgar and State of lllinois, have invented a new and useful Napkiml'lolder, of which the following is a specification.

The present invention relates to improvements in devices for holding napkins, towels, or bibs beneath the chin for the purpose of protecting the apparel of the wearer, and has for its object to provide a device of this character which composed largely of spring wire having an intermediate resilient portion that will enable the ends of the device to be separated in order that the device may be applied to the neck, clips or napkin attaching devices being provided at points between the resilient portion and its ends to receive and firmly secure the napkin or similar device.

To these and other ends, the invention consists in certain improvements and combinations and arrangement of parts, all as will be hereinafter more fully described, the novel features being pointed out particularly in the claims at the end oi the specification.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a perspec tive view oi a napkin holder constructed in accordance with my present invention, the dotted lines indicating the position of the napkin relatively thereto. Fig. 2 is a detail view of one of the attaching devices or clips.

Corresponding parts in the several figures are indicated throughout by similar characters of reference.

The device shown in the present embodiment of my invention comprises an expansible body portion composed, in the present instance, oi a single piece of resilient wire having a coil or convolution 1 formed therein, the ends of the wire crossing one another at 2 and extending laterally in opposite directions and thence upwardly and inwardly, forming the free ends 3 and 4, which preferably overlap or extend parallel to one another to form an extensible ring, the extremities of the 'free ends of the ring being provided with the rolled or enlarged portions 5 and 6 in order to permit them to readily enter behind the wearers neck without liability of catching in the clothing.

Arranged on the annular body portion at points be tween the convolution 1 and the upper free ends are a pair of napkin attaching devices or clips, these devices being so constructed and arranged relatively to the wire composing the ring that they will cooperate therewith to form a clamp adapted to receive the upper edge of the napkin or other device that it may be desirable to employ to protect the wearers apparel. In the present instance, these attaching devices are duplicates, and are composed each of a single piece of sheet material having sufficient resiliency to form a spring, one end of the attaching device being suitably secured to the wire by soldering and by rolling a portion about the wire, as hown at 7 a suitable means being provided for preventing relatively longitudinal displacement, a drop oi solder between the parts serving this purpose. Adjacent to the attached portion of each clip is provided a bend Sforming a spring portion of ample length to afford suliicie nt resilience to the clip, and beyond this spring portion the clip is provided with a clamping portion 9 extending substantially parallel to the adjacent portion of the wire composing the supporting ring, and the lower free end of the clamping portion is form ed with an outturned guide 10 providing an enlarged en trance between the clip and the cooperating wire and adapted to facilitate the entrance of: the napkin between these parts. It is preierable that these clips should open downwardly, as this enables the napkin to be applied by a direct upward movement, and it is suspended in proper position without doubling or folding it.

In using a device of this character, the napkin is applied thereto by inserting one of its edges into the opening between the wire composing the ring and the outturned guide of the clip or attaching devices, an upward drawing action of the napkin relatively to the ring serving to introduce the napkin between the ring and the clamping portion 9 of the clips, it being convenient to hold the bottom portion of the holder during the application of the napkin by placing one of the fingers in the handle provided by the coil or convolution 1, the portion of the napkin between the clips being left sufliciently loose as to permit the necessary separation of the ends of the wire ring in applying it to the neck of the user. With a napkin thus applied, the ends of the ring are drawn apart sufficiently to admit a persons neck to the inside of the ring, and when the ends of the ring are released, they will antomatically engage behind the wearers neck to retain the device in operative position, the coil or convolution I permitting a relative opening movement of the ends of the ring without permanently distorting its shape. The napkin may be removed very.quickly by holding the upper portion of the wire ring and pulling on the lower edge of the napkin, as this will disengage the upper edge of the napkin from the clips.

A napkin holder embodying my present invention may be constructed and sold at a nominal price, for the reason that the expansible ring or body portion may be made automatically by a wire bending machine and the clips may be punched and stamped from sheet material and applied to the ring by automatic machinery, and in use it serves to effectually support the napkin or similar device flatwise across the chest be low the chin in such a way that creasing or folding of the napkin is unnecessary, so that the latter may be used a number of times, and it is spread to cover a large area, the operation of applying and removing the napkins relatively to the holders being very easily accomplished. The device while being Worn also presents a neat appearance because the entire half of the ring or body portion of the holder below the attached ends of the clips is concealed behind the napkin, while the upper portion of the ring is concealed largely by the neck, so that practically the only por tions visible are the clips or napkin attaching devices, and by forming a closed coil or convolution in the ring to provide the desired resiliency, a better action is obtained and the liability of breakage in opening the ring is minimized, for the reason that in separating the ends of the ring the coil will be closed.

Of course, it will be understood that the device shown and described herein is but one embodiment of the invention, and it is not so limited, as various slight changes within the scope of the appended claims might suggest themselves to those skilled in the art to which the invention appertains, which changes could be made without departing from the spirit of the invention.

What is claimed is 1. A napkin holder composed of a strip of resilient ma terial having its middle portion coiled to form a single convolution, the ends of the coil crossing one another and thence bowing outwardly and finally approaching one another to form a loop having substantially rigid sides, the free ends of the loop providing neck-engaging portions, and a pair of napkin attaching devices composed of flat resilient material arranged on the holder at points between the intermediate convolution and the ends of the holder, both devices being arranged on the same side of the holder and operating in planes transverse to the plane thereof.

2. A napkin holder composed of a strip of resilient wire having its middle portion formed into a coil and its ends curved inwardly to form neck engaging portions, and a pair of napkin attaching devices arranged on the holder at points intermediate the said coil and the ends thereof, each composed of flat resilient material having one end rolled about and rigidly secured to the holder, both attaching devices ektending laterally from the same side of the holder and opening toward the said coil, the free ends of the said devices being turned outwardly from the holder to form a guide for facilitating the insertion of the napkin.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have hereto afiixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

CHARLES D. SMITH.

Witnesses:

L. A. WILKIN, W. N. BURT.

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