Coat hanger dispenser

Claim 1

A coat hanger dispenser comprising an elongate longitudinally inclined rail with an upper inner end and a lower outer end and adapted to be engaged by the laterally inwardly and downwardly opening central hook portions of and to slidably support a plurality of coat hangers, advancing means at the lower outer end of the rail operable to intermittently engage the hook portion of the lower and outermost coat hanger on the rail and to advance said hangers forwardly and outwardly relative to the rail, delivery means at and extending forwardly from the advancing means to receive and releasably support a coat hanger advanced by said advancing means for manual engagement and removal and control means carried by the delivery means and connected with the advancing means to effect operation of the advancing means each time a hanger is manually engaged and removed from supported engagement with said delivery means, said advancing means includes a flat disc-shaped rotor on an axis normal to the axis of the rail and having an upper inner portion with a coat hanger hook engaging part projecting into a notch in the outer end of the rail, electric drive means to rotate the rotor to move the part upwardly forwardly and downwardly relative to the rail and to advance the hanger carried thereby forwardly, said delivery means including a longitudinally outwardly and downwardly inclined rod to slidably engage a hanger advanced by the advancing means, and a saddle on the rod to establish hooked engagement with an advanced hanger, said control means including a switch at the saddle and engaged and operated by a hanger engaged with the saddle.