Apparatus and method for unwinding rolls of elongated flexible material, such as electrical wire

A dispenser for unwinding a roll of flexible material comprising:

• a rigid support bracket configured with a generally C-shape and formed with an upper hook portion, a vertical wall and a lower wall with an aperture provided therethrough;
• a rigid, vertically extending central member in the form of an elongated bar with a generally polygonal cross section having flat side walls, a top end rotatably connected to the lower wall of the support bracket by a pivot pin, and a bottom end provided with a series of pivot brackets attached thereto;
• and
• a plurality of hinged support arm assemblies attached to the central member and movable between a retracted position and an extended position, each support arm assembly including an upper support arm and a lower support arm, the upper support arm having an upper end pivotally attached to a guide collar that is slidably mounted about a periphery of the central member, and a lower end that is pivotally connected to an upper end of the lower support arm, the lower support arm having a lower end pivotally secured to the pivot brackets fixed on the bottom end of the central member.

A method of dispensing flexible elongated material from a roll having a central recess, the method comprising the steps of:

• (a) providing a dispenser including a rigid support bracket configured with a generally C-shape and formed with an upper hook portion, a vertical wall and a lower wall with an aperture provided therethrough,
• a rigid, vertically extending central member in the form of an elongated bar with a generally polygonal cross section having flat side walls, a top end rotatably connected to the lower wall of the support bracket by a pivot pin and a bottom end provided with a series of pivot brackets attached therethrough, and
• a plurality of hinged support arm assemblies attached to the central member and movable between a retracted position and an extended position, each support arm assembly including an upper support arm and a lower support arm, the upper support arm having an upper end pivotally attached to a guide collar that is slidably mounted about a periphery of the central member, and a lower end that is pivotally connected to an upper end of the lower support arm, the lower support arm having a lower end pivotally secured to the pivot brackets fixed on the bottom end of the central member,
• the hinged support arm assemblies buckling outwardly relative to the central member into an extended, material-supporting position;
• (b) placing the recess of the roll of flexible material over the central member and the support bracket so that the roll of the flexible material is supported on upper portions of the extended upper support arms;
• (c) suspending the support bracket from a fixed support member;
• and
• (d) pulling an end of the roll of flexible material so that the roll rotates with the hinge support arm assemblies and the central member relative to the fixed support member to unwind the flexible material from the roll.