MAGNETIC HANGER FOR PICTURES AND SIGNS
A magnetic cone is provided for releasably affixing objects to a wall, or other such surface. The cone is dimensioned to fit in the recess remaining in formed concrete walls once the snap tie is broken and removed. The magnetic cone is preferably a snap tie cone, and therefore fits relatively snugly in the recess. It is provided with a magnet that extends the length of the longitudinal axis, and is housed within the bore of the cone.
The technology relates to a magnetic plug for attaching pictures and the like to magnetic surfaces. More specifically, the technology is a snap tie cone having a magnetic core wherein the snap tie cone is inserted in the cavity remaining in concrete after the conical spacer is removed, magnetically attaches to the lateral snap tie bar, and any object comprising a magnetic material and is removable after use.
BACKGROUNDFormed concrete walls are found in many commercial, public, recreational and educational buildings. If a picture or sign is affixed to the concrete, it is usually with a permanent adhesive, such as epoxy or a fastener such as a pressure driven nail or a drilled screw. Removal of signs is therefore difficult. In the case of adhesives, removal can damage the sign and leave an adhesive residue on the wall, along with discolouration of the wall. Nails and screws can cause cracking in the concrete and can require patching of the wall when removed. For this reason, the walls are generally left as bare expanses.
Advertisers and professional communicators are continually looking for new and untapped messaging space. More recently, elevators, washroom cubicles, and taxi seat backs have been used as advertising space. Bare concrete walls offer a new and relatively untapped advertising, communication and message space.
Interior designers eschew concrete walls. They are cold, unappealing and poor sound dampeners. Wall coverings, sound dampeners and wall hangings are a few ways that these walls are made to be more appealing. Affixing drywall is yet another method to improve the appearance, however, this is costly and permanent and encroaches on the free space facing the wall.
SUMMARYA plug is provided for releasably affixing objects to concrete walls, leaving no mark once removed. The plug fits into the recess in concrete walls following removal of the end portion of a snap tie. The plug is preferably a snap tie cone that has a magnet housed within its central core. The magnet releasably affixes any object that is attracted to the magnet and is therefore useful for advertising, communicating or display purposes. The snap tie cones are frusto-conical in shape and fit relatively snugly into the recess, adding a measure of physical support in addition to the magnetic support. The plug therefore offers a means for releasably affixing objects to concrete walls. Further, the plug itself can be removed from the recess.
A frusto-conical plug, generally referred to as 10 is shown in
In use, the plug 10 is located in the recess 30 of a concrete wall 32, as shown in
As shown in
In yet another embodiment, the object to be retained may be glued or otherwise affixed to the plug or cone, as shown in
The foregoing is a description of embodiments of the technology. As would be known to one skilled in the art, variations that do not alter the scope of the technology are considered. For example, the cone or plug may be provided with more than one magnet, the magnets may be located within the cone or plug, or may extend the length of longitudinal axis or part of the length or may be located in apertures. The cone or plug may alternatively have a magnet affixed to the surface of the top and optionally a magnet additionally affixed to the base. These magnets could be disc magnets, wafer magnets or any other shaped magnet as would be known to one skilled in the art. The cone or plug may be of any size appropriate for being retained in a recess of a wall, or alternatively, for magnetically attaching to any magnetic surface of a wall, wherein magnetic surface is as defined above, and is for example, but not limited to a white board.
Claims
1. A plug for releasably retaining an object having a first magnetic surface to a second magnetic surface located in a recess on an outer surface, the plug comprising a body and at least one magnet, such that in use, the plug is releasably retained in the recess by a magnetic field and releasably retains the object by at least one magnetic field.
2. The plug of claim 1 wherein one magnet extends through a central bore extending on a longitudinal axis of the plug thereby providing one magnetic field.
3. The plug of claim 2 wherein the plug is sized to be releasably retained in a recess having a depth of at least about 0.75 cm and a diameter of about 1.5 cm to about 5 cm.
4. The plug of claim 3 wherein the plug has a length of about 2.5 cm and a maximum diameter of about 2.5 cm.
5. The plug of claim 2 wherein the plug is a frusto-conical plug.
6. The plug of claim 5, wherein the plug is a snap tie cone.
7. A combination for releasably retaining an object having a first magnetic surface, the combination comprising:
- a recess on an outer surface, the recess having a second magnetic surface; and
- a plug comprising a body and at least one magnet to provide at least one magnetic field, such that in use the plug is retained in the recess and retains the object by at least one magnetic field.
8. The combination of claim 7 wherein one magnet extends through a central bore extending on a longitudinal axis of the plug thereby providing one magnetic field.
9. The combination of claim 8 wherein the plug is a frusto-conical plug.
10. The combination of claim 9 wherein the recess is a snap tie recess, the second magnetic surface is a snap tie and the outer surface is a concrete surface.
11. The combination of claim 10 wherein the plug is a snap tie cone.
12. The combination of claim 11 wherein the object is a sign or a picture.
13. (canceled)
14. A combination for releasably retaining an object, the combination comprising:
- a recess on an outer surface, the recess having a magnetic surface;
- a plug comprising a body and at least one magnet to provide at least one magnetic field; and
- an adhesive for affixing the object to the body such that in use the plug is retained in the recess by a magnetic field and the object is affixed to the body by the adhesive.
Type: Application
Filed: Feb 24, 2011
Publication Date: Jun 13, 2013
Inventor: Christopher J. Jaeger (Nanaimo)
Application Number: 13/261,601
International Classification: A47G 1/17 (20060101);