EP3586668B1

EP3586668B1 - Device for adjusting the angle of a parasol cover

Info

Publication number: EP3586668B1
Application number: EP18179192.2A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Yexiang YANG
Original assignee: Linhai Jiade Leisure Products Co Ltd
Current assignee: Linhai Jiade Leisure Products Co Ltd
Priority date: 2018-06-22
Filing date: 2018-06-22
Publication date: 2021-02-03
Anticipated expiration: 2038-06-22
Also published as: EP3586668A1

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to the field of parasol, in particular to a device for adjusting the angle of a parasol cover.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Parasols are commonly used outdoor products and can be used in various outdoor recreation areas. When it rains, the rain falls in the direction of the wind. On sunny days, the illumination angle of the sun changes with time. Therefore, it is very necessary to adjust the angle of the parasol cover at the right time.
If there is a need to adjust the angle of an ordinary parasol, it is necessary to adjust the position of the entire parasol, which is inconvenient. For the convenience of adjustment, an adjustment device is usually set on the slanting rod (i.e., the rotation axis) of the parasol. When the adjustment is performed, rotation of the handle of the adjustment device causes the slanting rod to also rotate, which in turn causes the parasol cover to change its orientation.
However, the existing adjustment devices are generally complicated in structure. As a result, on the one hand, they are difficult to assemble during production, and on the other hand, they have poor reliability and high failure rate. Especially, due to their unreasonable structure, their handles can be easily broken, and the corresponding production and maintenance costs are very high. Further, adjustment of the angle of the parasol cover cannot be performed easily and smoothly. A patent document ( FR 2992834 A1 ) discloses an eccentric parasol. The parasol has a rectangular arm comprising an end. The arm is adjustable in rotation around its axis to swivel orientation of a corolla. The corolla is arranged with a rotation adjustment mechanism for adjustment of rotation of the arm around its axis. A bolt is carried by a body, where the bolt engages in a crown wheel segment according to the position of rotation of the body with regard to the segment around the axis. A handle actuates the bolt and releases the bolt from the crown wheel segment to release the body on a hub. For this eccentric parasol, the engagement of the first toothed portion and the second toothed portion may not be smooth in a locking or unlocking process of the handle and the hub.
In addition, due to the very high usage frequency of the adjustment device, the above disadvantages are more pronounced.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In order to overcome the above-mentioned deficiencies in the prior art, the present invention provides a device for adjusting the angle of a parasol cover, which has a simple and reliable structure, can be easily assembled and can be easily and smoothly adjusted at least to a certain extent. The present invention is practiced by the following technical solution: A device for adjusting the angle of a parasol cover, characterized in that the device comprises an adapter shaft, a casing and a handle, wherein
the adapter shaft is rotatably connected with the casing and is axially limited, and the adapter shaft comprises a first mounting structure and a first toothed portion, the first mounting structure being configured to install and fix the adapter shaft,
the casing comprises a second mounting structure, the second mounting structure being configured to install and fix the parasol slanting rod, and
the handle comprises a second toothed portion, the handle being hingedly connected with the casing for engagement of the second toothed portion and the first toothed portion so as to lock or unlock the position of the casing relative to the adapter shaft;
wherein, the axis of the adapter shaft is perpendicular to the hinge axis of the handle, the first toothed portion comprises a plurality of first gear teeth, which are arranged and spaced along the circumferential direction of the adapter shaft in the shape of convex arcs, and the second toothed portion comprises a plurality of second gear teeth, which are arranged and spaced along the hinge direction of the handle in the shape of concave arcs;
wherein, torsion springs are further provided at a position where the handle is hinged with the casing.
Preferably, the device further comprises a bearing and a check ring, wherein the first mounting structure is located at an outer end of the adapter shaft, the casing is sleeved outside an inner end of the adapter shaft, the inner end of the adapter shaft is provided with an annular groove, the bearing is arranged between the adapter shaft and the casing, the check ring is provided at the annular groove to axially limit the adapter shaft
Preferably, the device further comprises a stopper, wherein the stopper is arranged between the handle and the casing and is fixed to the handle and/or the casing, so as to define a distance between the handle and the casing when the second toothed portion is fully engaged with the first toothed portion.
Preferably, the inner end of the adapter shaft comprises the first toothed portion, and the casing is provided with an opening at a position corresponding to the first toothed portion, and the handle is hinged with the casing at the opening.
Preferably, the bearing is axially limited by the adapter shaft and the casing.
Preferably, ends of the second gear teeth are chamfered.
The present invention has a simple and reliable structure, can be assembled easily and conveniently, and has good integrality. The handle can not only control the position of the casing relative to the adapter shaft, but also can be rotated to adjust the angle of the parasol cover during adjustment in the unlocking position easily and smoothly.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present invention will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments.

FIG. 1 is a schematic structural view of an assembled state according to an embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 2 is an exploded view of FIG. 1;
FIG. 3 is a schematic structural sectional view of the usage state of FIG. 1;
FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of A in FIG. 3.

The reference numerals in the figure correspond to the following, adapter shaft 1, casing 2, handle 3, first deep groove ball bearing 4, second deep groove ball bearing 5, check ring 6, torsion spring 7, torsion spring 8, flat head internal stud 9, external bolt 10, gasket 11, countersunk blind rivet 12, cap 13, control device 14, parasol slanting rod 15, parasol pillar 16, parasol pull rod 17, screw 18, screw 19, rotary holder 20, rotary connector 21, steel wire 22, first mounting structure 23, second mounting structure 24, first toothed portion 25, second toothed portion 26 and annular groove 27.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF ILLUSTRATED EMBODIMENTS

The present invention is further described in the following with reference to the accompanying drawings and embodiments.
As an example, the device for adjusting the angle of the parasol cover of this embodiment comprises an adapter shaft 1, a casing 2, and a handle 3, as shown in FIG. 1.
Specifically, as shown in FIG. 2, the adapter shaft 1 comprises an outer end portion and an inner end portion. The outer end portion comprises a first mounting structure 23. The outer end portion is provided with a shoulder at the position where the outer end portion meets the inner end portion. The inner end portion is provided with an annular groove 27, a second mounting position, a first mounting position and a first toothed portion 25 in the form of multiple steps having increasing diameters in the direction towards the outer end portion. The first deep groove ball bearing 4 is arranged at the first mounting position, and the second deep groove ball bearing 5 is provided at the second mounting position. The casing 2 is cylindrical, and its inner surface is provided with multi-stepped structure having decreasing diameters in the direction towards the adapter shaft 1. One end of the casing 2 is sleeved outside the inner end of the adapter shaft 1. An elastic check ring 6 for the shaft is provided at the annular groove 27. The multi-stepped structure having increasing diameters of the adapter shaft 1 match with the annular protrusion and the multi-stepped structure having decreasing diameters of the casing 2, respectively, and pass through the check ring 6 and the bearings. The bearings are thus axially limited by the adapter shaft 1 and the casing 2. The adapter shaft 1 is rotatably connected with the casing 2 and is axially limited, that is, the adapter shaft 1 is relatively fixed at the casing 2 towards the position of the axis direction of the adapter shaft 1.
The first mounting structure is located at one end of the device. This embodiment is implemented in a hinged structure. As shown in FIG. 4, after the screw 18 is hinged, the adapter shaft 1 is limited and difficult to rotate.
The other end of the casing 2 (corresponding to the other end of the device) comprises a second mounting structure 24. As shown in FIG. 4, the second mounting structure 24 is in the shape of a sleeve and is sleeved on one end of the parasol slanting rod 15, and is provided with fixing holes along the extension of the parasol slanting rod 15. The screws 19 pass through the fixing holes and are screwed connected with the parasol slanting rod, so that the position of the casing 2 is fixed relative to the parasol slanting rod 15.
The casing 2 is provided with an opening at a position corresponding to the first toothed portion 25, and the handle 3 is hinged with the casing 2 at the opening. Specifically, the casing 2 is symmetrically provided with two flanged walls at opposite sides of the opening and along the axis of the adapter shaft 1. The hinge portion of the handle 3 is located between the two flanged walls. A torsion spring 7 and a torsion spring 8 are respectively arranged between the hinge portion and the flanged wall. One end of the inner hex flat head internal stud 9 passes through the flanged wall, the torsion springs and the hinge portion, and is fixed by the external bolt 10. The outer ends of the flat head internal stud 9 and the external bolt 10 are each covered with a cap 13.
The axis of the adapter shaft 1 is perpendicular to the hinge axis of the handle 3. The first toothed portion 25 comprises a plurality of first gear teeth, which are arranged and spaced along the circumferential direction of the adapter shaft 1 in the shape of convex arcs. The second toothed portion 26 comprises a plurality of second gear teeth, which are arranged and spaced along the hinge direction of the handle 3 in the shape of concave arcs. When engaged, the second gear teeth are in close contact with the first gear teeth, and therefore, the casing 2 and the adapter shaft 1 can be tightly locked. For the convenience of engagement, preferably, the ends of the second gear teeth are chamfered so that the surface of each of the second gear teeth is convexly curved to facilitate engagement with the second gear teeth.
The handle 3 comprises the second toothed portion 26, which is arranged at the hinge portion adjacent to the above-mentioned opening of the casing 2 for engaging with the first toothed portion 25 to lock or unlock the position of the casing 2 relative to the adapter shaft 1. The handle 3 is preferably a solid structure in the shape of a long arm, which is more simple and robust. The long-armed handle 3 facilitates easy adjustment of the angle of the parasol cover.
For the positioning of the first toothed portion 25 and full engagement of the second toothed portion 26, it is preferable to further comprise a gasket 11, which is arranged between the handle 3 and the casing 2 and is fixed to the handle 3 and the casing 2 via a countersunk blind rivet 12. The gasket 11 is used as a stopper, so as to define a distance between the handle 3 and the casing 2 when the second toothed portion 26 is fully engaged with the first toothed portion 25. Of course, the gasket 11 may also be provided only on either one of the handle 3 and the casing 2. Correspondingly, under the restoring force of the torsion spring 7 and the torsion spring 8, the handle 3 maintains the relative positions of the first toothed portion 25 and the second toothed portion 26.
The detailed structure is shown in FIGS. 3 to 4. The device is hingedly connected with a control device 14 through the first mounting structure 23. The control device 14 is arranged on a parasol pillar 16. One end of the parasol pillar 16 is hinged with one end of the parasol pull rod 17, and the other end of the parasol pull rod 17 is hinged with a rotary connector 21, and the rotary connector 21 is rotatably connected with a rotary holder 20. The rotary holder 20 is fixedly arranged at the central portion of the parasol slanting rod 15. The parasol slanting rod 15 is fixed at one end with the parasol cover, and the other end of the parasol slanting rod 15 is fixedly connected with the second mounting structure 24. One end of a steel wire 22 is connected with the parasol skeleton converging portion, and the other end passes through the parasol slanting rod 15, the casing 2 and the adapter shaft 1 and is connected with the control device 14. When in use, the handle 3 is turned outwardly to unlock the relative positions of the casing 2 and the adapter shaft 1. Then, the handle 3 is moved forward or backward to bring the parasol pull rod 17 to rotate, so as to adjust the angle of the parasol cover. After the parasol cover is adjusted to an appropriate position, the handle 3 is pressed inwardly to lock the relative positions of the casing 2 and the adapter shaft 1.
It is to be noted that, modifications or changes may be made by those skilled in the art based on the above description, and all these modifications and changes should fall within the protection scope of the appended claims of the present invention.
While the present invention has been described in connection with what are presently considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments, but on the contrary, is intended to cover various modifications comprised within the scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

Claims

A device for adjusting the angle of a parasol cover, comprising an adapter shaft (1), a casing (2) and a handle (3), wherein the adapter shaft (1) is rotatably connected with the casing (2) and is axially limited; the adapter shaft (1) comprises a first mounting structure (23) and a first toothed portion (25), the first mounting structure (23) being configured to install and fix the adapter shaft (1);
the casing (2) comprises a second mounting structure (24), the second mounting structure (24) being configured to install and fix a parasol slanting rod (15), and
the handle (3) comprises a second toothed portion (26), the handle (30) being hingedly connected with the casing (2) for engagement of the second toothed portion (26) and the first toothed portion (25) so as to lock or unlock the position of the casing (2) relative to the adapter shaft (1);
wherein the axis of the adapter shaft (1) is perpendicular to the hinge axis of the handle (3);
characterized in that
the first toothed portion (25) comprises a plurality of first gear teeth, which are arranged and spaced along a circumferential direction of the adapter shaft (1) in a shape of convex arcs; the second toothed portion (26) comprises a plurality of second gear teeth, which arc arranged and spaced along a hinge direction of the handle (3) in a shape of concave arcs;
torsion springs (7, 8) are further provided at a position where the handle (3) is hinged with the casing (2).
The device according to claim 1, characterized in that the device further comprises a bearing (4, 5) and a check ring (6); wherein the first mounting structure (23) is located at an outer end of the adapter shaft (1); the casing (2) is sleeved outside an inner end of the adapter shaft (1); the inner end of the adapter shaft (1) is provided with an annular groove (27); the bearing (4, 5) is arranged between the adapter shaft (1) and the casing (2), the check ring (6) is provided at the annular groove (27) to axially limit the adapter shaft (1).
The device according to claim 1, characterized in that the device further comprises a stopper (11); wherein the stopper (11) is arranged between the handle (3) and the casing (2) and is fixed to the handle (3) and/or the casing (2), so as to define a distance between the handle (3) and the casing (2) when the second toothed portion (26) is fully engaged with the first toothed portion (25).
The device according to claim 2, characterized in that the inner end of the adapter shaft (1) comprises the first toothed portion (25); and the casing (2) is provided with an opening at a position corresponding to the first toothed portion (25), and the handle (3) is hinged with the casing (2) at the opening.
The device according to claim 2, characterized in that the bearing (4, 5) is axially limited by the adapter shaft (1) and the casing (2).
The device according to claim 1, characterized in that ends of the second gear teeth are chamfered.