Regulation 3.2 AUSTRALIA PATENTS ACT 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION FOR A STANDARD PATENT ORIGINAL Name of Applicant: Hills Industries Limited Actual Inventors: Tim Hooper David Nicholls Michael Ng Address for Service: C/- MADDERNS, 1st Floor, 64 Hindmarsh Square, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia Invention title: A LINE TENSIONER USING A BIASING MEANS Details of Associated Provisional Application Nos: 2007901027 dated 28 February 2007 The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to us. PatAU131 This invention relates to a line tensioner which also functions as a line tie-off fitting and in particular to a line tensioner using a biasing means to apply tension to the line. 5 BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The main application for the invention is in relation to a line that is secured with respect to a clothes line frame. Although this is the main use of the invention, there will be numerous other applications of tensioning lines to which the invention will be equally suited and therefore the invention is not restricted to this specific 10 application. Also, a reference below to "line" will also include "clothes line". Clotheslines normally comprise square or rectangular tubular frames or radial arms which have apertures through which a line is threaded to result in a series of spaced parallel lines used for hanging clothes. 15 In the case of square or rectangular tubular frames, the lines are strung between opposing sides, whereas, in the case of radiating arms, a line is threaded around the arms to produce a series of spaced parallel lines between each radiating arm. 20 The line used is normally a plastic coated multi-strand cord. The typical loads applied to the line can result in considerable elongation which then causes difficulty in accessing adjacent lines for hanging washing due to the sagging of the line between the frame members. This also results in an unsightly appearance. 25 This has resulted in the use of line tie-off fittings such as described in Australian Patent No. 767244 entitled "A Cord Tie-Off Fitting" and Australian Patent Application No. 2006905847 entitled "A Tie-Off Fitting", both patent documents assigned to the applicant of the present application, and whose contents are incorporated by reference in their entirety herein. These devices enable the line to 30 be easily disconnected, and re-tensioned and then re-secured. 2 The present invention allows repositioning of the line but includes a means of positively applying tension to the line. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 5 In one aspect, the invention is a line tensioner that creates tension in a line extending between supports comprising at least one retainer for holding the line with respect to a support, and biasing means located between the line and the retainer disposed to impel the line toward tension. Preferably, the line is able to move with respect to said retainer. 10 Preferably, the retainer enables the line to be manually adjusted to provide a preset position for the line prior to the biasing means applying tension. Preferably, the retainer comprises an assembly which can be easily disassembled to access the line I5 adjustment mechanism. Preferably, the biasing means comprises a coil spring which is positioned between a portion of the retainer and the free end of the line. The assembly of the retainer causes the spring to be placed into compression thereby applying tension to the line. 20 Preferably, the line tensioner is used in relation to tensioning clothes line. In a further aspect, the invention comprises a clothesline tie-off fitting for creating tension in a clothes line that extends between supports that comprises: 25 at least one retainer for holding the clothes line with respect to a support wherein the clothes line is retained but able to move with respect to the retainer, a clothes line tie-off Fitting positioned at the end of the clothes line to allow adjustment of the length of the clothes line, and 3 biasing means located between the clothesline tie-off fitting and the retainer to apply tension to the clothes line. In order for the invention to be fully understood, illustrative embodiments will 5 now be described. However, it should be realised that the invention is not to be confined or restricted to the precise details of these illustrative embodiments. Other features such as would be readily apparent to a person skilled in this area are to be included within the scope of the invention. 10 BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The embodiments are illustrated in the accompanying representations in which; Figure 1 shows a clothesline frame with a number of clothes lines secured to the frame, Figure 2 shows a perspective view of a clothes line tensioner according to a 15 first illustrative embodiment, Figure 3 shows an exploded perspective view of the clothes line tensioner illustrated in Figure 2, Figure 4 shows an exploded side view of the clothes line tensioner illustrated in Figure 2, 20 Figure 5 shows an assembled cross-section view of the clothes line tensioner illustrated in Figure 2, Figure 6 shows an exploded perspective view of a clothes line tensioner according to a second illustrative embodiment of the present invention, Figure 7 shows an exploded perspective view of a clothes line tie off fitting, 25 Figure 8 shows a side exploded view of a clothes line attachment assembly comprising the clothes line tensioner illustrated in Figure 6 and the clothes line tie off fitting illustrated in Figure 7, Figure 9 shows an assembled side sectional view of the clothes line attachment assembly illustrated in Figure 8, 4 Figure 10 shows an exploded perspective view of a clothes line tensioner according to an improvement of a second illustrative embodiment of the present invention, Figure 11 shows an assembled cross-section view of the clothes line tensioner 5 illustrated in Figure 10, Figure 12 shows an assembled cross-section view of the clothes line tensioner illustrated in Figure 10, and Figure 13 shows an exploded side view of a clothes line tensioner as illustrated in Figures 10 to 12. 10 DETAILED DESCRIPTION Figure 1 shows a clothesline 10 having a frame that comprises a pair of side supports 11 and a cross piece 12. The clothesline 10 is pivotally attached to a wall, by brackets 13 that enable it to be rotated between its extended position as shown 15 in Figure 1 to a storage position where it rotates down to a substantially vertical position. A number of clothes lines described in this embodiment as lines 15 extend between the side supports 11. Figure 3 shows an exploded view of one line tie-off and tension fitting. Firstly, the 20 line 15 is threaded through a tie-off fitting 17. The tie-off fitting 17 has a tubular body 18 with a bridge portion 19 that extends across one end of the tubular body 18. The bridge portion is designed as a cantilever so it is attached at only one side of the tubular body 18. This allows a certain amount of flexing movement of the bridge portion 19 as will be described below. 25 As can be seen in Figure 3, 4 and 5, the line 15 is threaded through the line tie-off fitting 17 with the line 15 being pinched sufficiently so that, when tension is applied to line 15, it will not slip through the line tie-off fitting 17. 5 To assist this, the bridge portion 19 flexes inwardly slightly under tension from the line causing a pinching affect which further restricts the slippage of the line in relation to the tie-off fitting 17. The line 15 is positioned through a coil spring 20 which is positioned between the tie-off fitting 17 5 and a cap 21. The cap 21 has a bayonet style attachment for releasable attachment to the connection fitting 23 that is attached to the side support I I by a self tapping screw 24. When assembled, the tie-off fitting 17 is able to move against the tension of the spring 20 within the cap 21. The line 15 is positioned within the line tie-off fitting 17 so that as the cap 21 is attached to 10 the connection fitting 23, the spring 20 is placed into compression. A pulling force is then applied to the line I5. This means that the line 15 is always under tension and therefore creates a straight line between the side supports II. Should the line 15 sag to such an extent that the spring 20 is no longer applying tension to the line I5 15, then cap 21 can be removed, and the line 15 re-adjusted through the line tie-off fitting 17 to shorten the effective length of the line 15 so that the spring 20 is again placed into tension when the cap 21 is attached to the connection fitting 23. As can be seen in Figure 4, the line tie-off fitting 17 has surfaces 25 that are spaced from the end 26 20 of the tie-off fitting 17. This allows the end 26 to be inserted within the spring 20 so that the surfaces 25 bear against the end of the spring 20 thereby always centring the tie-off fitting 17 within the end of the spring 20. The cap 21 also has a tubular projection 27 in the cap so that the end of the spring 20 opposite to the line tie-off fitting 17 locates around the tubular projection 27 to positively locate the spring in that end of the cap 21. 25 The cap 21 has three ribs 29 that run longitudinally on the inside surface of the cap 21. Slots 30 are formed towards the end of each rib 29 which form part of the bayonet connection with the connection fitting 23. The connection fitting 23 has a 6 spigot 31 and three ridges 32 positioned on the outer surface of the spigot 31. The ridges 32 are equally spaced around and circumferentially aligned on the spigot 31. End stops 33 are positioned at the end of each ridge 32. 5 The ribs 29 locate within spaces between the ridges 32 and the end cap 21 is pushed onto the spigot 31 so that the ridges align with the slots 30. The cap 21 can then be rotated so that the respective ridges 32 locate within the slots 30. The cap 21 is rotated until the rib 29 buts against the end stop 33. This then fixes the cap 21 to the connection fitting 23. 10 Referring now to Figures 6 to 9, there is shown a line tensioner 100 according to a second illustrative embodiment of the present invention. In this illustrative embodiment, instead of attaching tie off fitting 17 to the end of line 15 a spherical abutment member 110 is moulded to the end of line 15. As would be apparent to 15 those skilled in the art, abutment member 110 need not be spherical as long as abutment member functions to prevent the end of line 15 from escaping by abuting spring 20 which in turn is captured within cap 21 which is attached to connection fitting 23. 20 Referring now to Figure 7, there is shown a clothes line tensioner 200 comprising a spigot portion 210 having a receiving aperture 211 to receive the end of line 15. Spigot portion 210 is fabricated substantially in accordance with the spigot of the line tie off fitting described in Australian Patent Application No. 2006905847 entitled "A Tie-Off Fitting" (see in particular Figures 3 to 11), this application 25 assigned to the applicant of the present application, and whose contents are incorporated by reference in their entirety herein. This tie off fitting 17 has been modified so that spigot portion 210 instead of being attached to a body which is then attached to a side support 11 is instead attached to 30 the connection fitting 23 by screw 24. In this manner, identical cap 21 and connection fitting 23 arrangements may be employed irrespective of whether a line 7 tensioner in accordance with the first or second illustrative embodiments of the present invention is used or a line tie off fitting such as described immediately above. Further modifications include that the recess region 211 (recess 25 as described in Australian Patent Application No. 2006905847) is part circular in sectional as opposed to flat in order to accommodate screw 24. In another illustrative 5 embodiment, spigot portion 210 is a free body which itself is captured and retained by cap 21 when attached to connection fitting 23 without any further fixing means. Referring now to Figures 8 and 9, there are shown side exploded and sectional views of a line attachment assembly 300 comprising the line tensioner 100 in accordance with the second illustrative 0 embodiment of the present invention and line tie off fitting 200 as described immediately above. Line tensioner 100 will function to absorb small amounts of slack that may occur in the line 15 however should the line 15 require significant retensioning then line tie off fitting 200 may be adjusted as required. 5 Figures 10 to 13 show a variation to the second embodiment. As an alternative to a spherical abutment member 110, the line may have a knot 40 tied in the end with a knot retainer 41 holding the knot 40 and acting as the engagement means with the spring 20. It will be understood that the term "comprise" and any of its derivatives (eg. comprises, comprising) 0 as used in this specification is to be taken to be inclusive of features to which it refers, and is not meant to exclude the presence of any additional features unless otherwise stated or implied. The reference to any prior art in this specification is not, and should not be taken as, an acknowledgement of any form of suggestion that such prior art forms part of the common general 25 knowledge. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the invention is not restricted in its use to the particular application described. Neither is the present invention restricted in its preferred embodiment with regard to the particular elements and/or features described or depicted herein. It will be 30 appreciated that various modifications can be made without departing from the principles of the invention. Therefore, the invention should be understood to include all such modifications in its scope. 8