US3217723A - Umbrella - Google Patents

Description

A. W. SUCHY Nov. 16, 1965 UMBRELLA 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed March 25, 1963 I NVEN TOR.

Nov.16,1965

Filed March 25, 1965 A. W. 5U CHY UMBRELLA 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 United States Patent 3,217,723 UMBRELLA Adalbert W. Suchy, 1934 Webster Ave., Bronx, N.Y. Filed Mar. 25, 1963, Ser. No. 267,420 6 Claims. (Cl. 13520) This invention relates to umbrellas and more specifically to a novel and improved umbrella characterized by its simplicity, utility and relatively low cost.

One object of the invention resides in the provision of a novel and improved umbrella having relatively few parts and which is relatively easy to manufacture, attractive and light in weight.

A further object of the invention resides in the provision of a novel and improved umbrella utilizing an arrangement and coordination of elements greatly simplifying umbrella construction and its operation.

Still another object of the invention resides in the provision of a novel and improved umbrella.

The above and other objects and advantages of the invention will become more apparent from the following description and accompanying drawings forming part of this application.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevational view of an umbrella in accordance with the invention.

FIGURE 2 is a side elevational view in partial section of the umbrella of FIGURE 1 in the open position.

FIGURE 3 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view of the umbrella of FIG. 1 taken along the line 33 thereof.

FIGURE 4 is an exploded perspective view of the umbrella rib retainer and actuator.

FIGURE 5 is a side elevational view of the assembled actuator of FIG. 4 in place on the umbrella shaft.

FIGURE 6 is a cross-sectional view of FIG. 5 taken along the line 66 thereof.

FIGURE 7 is a cross-sectional view of a modified actuator in accordance with the invention.

FIGURE 8 is a cross-sectional view of the actuator shown in FIG. 7 and taken along the line 88 thereof.

FIGURE 9 is a cross-sectional view of FIGURE 1 taken along the line 99 thereof.

The umbrella or parasol in accordance with the invention comprises a rod or shaft 10 and a canopy 11 carried by the shaft and movable from a closed position as shown in FIG. 1 to an open position as shown in FIG. 2 by means of the improved arrangement of a plurality of ribs 12 and a central sliding actuator 13. While the operation of the umbrella will be described in detail, it will be observed from FIGS. 1 and 2 that the actuator 13, when the umbrella is closed, is in an upper position on the shaft 10 as shown in FIG. 1, while when the umbrella is open as shown in FIG. 2, the actuator 13 has been moved downwardly on the shaft 10.

More specifically, the rod 10 is provided with a conventional handle or other suitable gripping means 14 on one end thereof, while the other end engages the center of the canopy. In the illustrated embodiment of the invention the center or apex 11' of the canopy is provided with several reenforcing layers and has an opening 15 therein. A hollow cap 16 is cemented or otherwise secured to the apex 11 of the canopy and in registration with the opening 15. The end of the rod or shaft 10 extends through the opening 15 and is cemented or otherwise secured within the cap 16.

The radiating ribs 12 which are carried by the actuator or operator 13 are preferably formed of resilient wire or rods, and in the instant embodiment of the invention, each pair of adjoining ribs are formed of a single piece of material bent in the form of a U with a short connecting portion 17 to facilitate installation in the 3,217,723 Patented Nov. 16, 1965 ice actuator 13 as will be observed more clearly in FIG. 4. The outer end 12 of each rib is bent at a slight obtuse angle as will be observed in FIG. 2. With this arrangement, as the ribs are moved to an essentially horizontal position as shown in FIG. 2, the end portions 12 lie in close proximity to the inner surface of the canopy 11. When the canopy is in the open position, the ribs exert an outward and downward pressure holding the canopy taut and at the same time exert an upward pressure on the actuator 13. Thus, any buckling of the central portions of the ribs will tend to be in an upward rather than a downward position so that as long as the actuator is retained in the position such as that shown in FIG. 2, the canopy will remain taut. With this construction and when the ribs are made of a reasonably stiff material, they afford material resistance to wind pressures tending to either collapse or invert the canopy, and these advantages are attained by the utilization of single rib elements without any diagonal supporting means as in the case of known structures for umbrellas and parasols.

The actuator 13, shown more clearly in FIGS. 4 and 5, comprises a cylindrical body 18 having five segmental elements 19 disposed in equally spaced relationship about the periphery of the body 18 and adjoining the upper end 20 thereof. Each of the elements 19 includes a transverse root slot or groove 21 adjoining the body 18 and having a depth roughly corresponding to the thickness or diameter of the sections 17 of the cooperating ribs 12. The angular width of each of the elements 19 is also coordinated with the configuration of the ribs so that the length of the connecting portion 17 of each pair of ribs is slightly greater than the length of the channel or recess 21. In this way ribs 12 will move relatively close to the side surfaces of the associated elements 19 as may be observed more clearly in FIG. 6. The ribs are held in place in their respective recesses 21 by a top plate 22 that may be cemented or otherwise secured to the faces 19' of the segmental elements 19. With this construction, the ribs 17 may be pivoted downwardly to the position shown, for instance, in FIG. 3, but the angularmovement upwardly relative to the actuator 13 is limited by the top plate 22. This arrangement tends to restrict bowing of the ribs and exerts added force on the edge of the canopy 11. In addition, the limitation of the upward motion of the ribs 12 produces a more rigid structure and one that effectively re srsts inversion of the canopy.

While any suitable means may be utilized for fixing the actuator 13 in a predetermined position on the rod or shaft 10 to hold the canopy in its open position, as shown in FIG. 2, the instant embodiment of the invention utilizes an elongated key 23 secured to or formed integrally with the shaft 10. The key extends preferably from the upper end of the shaft as shown in FIG. 2 downwardly to a point defined by the upper surfaces of the actuator 13 when the inner portions of the ribs 12 lie essentially in a horizontal plane. The actuator is pro-' vided with a cooperating keyway 24 adapted to slidably receive the key 23. With the umbrella in the closed position and the keyway 24 in engagement with the key 23, the actuator is moved downwardly to open the umbrella and at the point when the actuator becomes disengaged from the key 23, the actuator is rotated slightly on the shaft 10 and then released. Because of the upward pressure exerted by the ribs on the actuator 13, the actuator will move upwardly against the lower end of the key 23 so that the key will now retain the actuator in a position shown in FIG. 2 and hold the umbrella in the open position. To release the actuator and permit the umbrella to be closed, it is merely necessary to rotate the actuator in one direction or the other until the keyway 24 is aligned with the key 23, in which case the actuator will merely slide upwardly, and the canopy will collapse to the closed position as shown in FIG. 1. If desired, a suitable tab may be secured to the periphery of the canopy 11 for encircling the ends of the ribs 12 to hold the canopy in the collapsed position.

The canopy 11 may, of course, be fabricated of any suitable material, such as cloth, plastic or the like, and preferably includes a seam or hem 26 about the periphery in order to prevent ripping or tearing of the canopy when in the stressed position. Moreover, any suitable means may be employed for securing the ends of the ribs 12 to the canopy. For instance, the canopy may be provided with a plurality of cup-like elements 27 secured at spaced points about the periphery to receive the ends of the ribs 12, the latter being cemented therein to prevent accidental disengagement. If desired, other procedures may be utilized, as, for instance, the formation of a triangularly shaped loop on the end of each of the ribs 12 which may then be sewn or otherwise secured to a reenforced canopy edge. Under certain conditions, it may be desirable to limit the downwardmost position of the actuator 13 and for this purpose, a pin 28 or other suitable stop may be secured to the rod or shaft 10 as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3.

While in an inexpensive version of the umbrella in accordance with the invention, the shaft 10 may be made of wood, and the actuator 13 and the canopy 11 of plastic materials, it is evident that the structure is equally adaptable to more expensive constructions utilizing a metal shaft 10 with a silk or fabric canopy.

A modified form of the actuator 13 is shown in FIGS. 7 and 8. In this embodiment of the invention, the actuator generally denoted by the numeral 30 includes a cylindrical member 31 having a peripheral flange 32 spaced from the top end 30' thereof. The flange 32 is provided with a plurality of slots 33, each slot being slightly wider than the diameter of the ribs 34. Each of the ribs 34 includes an opening 35, and a wire 36 is fed through the openings to secure the ribs in position about the cylindrical member 31 as illustrated in FIG. 8. It will be observed that the ribs can ride from a horizontal position to a downwardly extending position within their respective slots 33. The ribs are secured in position by an overlying plate 37 which may be cemented or otherwise secured to the upper end 30" of the cylindrical member 31 and flat against the top side of the flange-like portion 32. The flange-like portion 32 includes an annular root slot or groove 32' for the reception of the wire 36 so that the plate 37 will fit flush against the flange-like member 32.

With the foregoing embodiment of the invention, the operation of the umbrella or parasol is identical to the operation illustrated and described in connection with FIGS. 1 and 2, and the ribs 34 have end configurations substantially the same as that described in connection with the ribs 12.

While only certain embodiments of the invention have been illustrated and described, it is understood that altera tions, modifications and changes may be made without departing from the true scope and spirit thereof as defined by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. An umbrella comprising a shaft, a canopy secured at its center to one end of said shaft, an actuator slidably carried on said shaft, said actuator having a sleeve, a plurality of spaced segmental elements extending from one end of said sleeve with each element having a transverse root slot, a plurality of ribs with each pair of ribs connected by a transverse connecting portion disposed within one of said root slots and with the ribs extending outwardly therefrom and between adjoining segmental elements, means retaining said transverse connecting portions in their associated root slots, means connecting the outer ends of said ribs to the periphery of said canopy and releasable means for securing the actuator in spaced relationship to said canopy to hold the latter in the open position and releasable for movement toward the canopy to close the umbrella.

2. An umbrella according to claim 1 wherein each of said ribs includes an end portion disposed at an obtuse angle with reference to the remainder of the rib.

3. An umbrella according to claim 2 wherein said releasable means includes an elongated key carried by said shaft and a cooperating keyway in said actuator.

4. An umbrella comprising a shaft, a canopy secured at its center to one end of said shaft, an actuator slidably engaging said shaft, a plurality of radially disposed canopy supporting ribs each pivotally connected at one end to the actuator and at the other end to the periphery of the canopy, said actuator having an annular flanged portion with a plurality of radially formed slots in the underside thereof to receive said ribs, each of said ribs having end portions at an angle less than relative to the remaining portion of the rib, said actuator being movable to and from positions on and adjoining the end of the shaft to which the canopy is secured to close and open the canopy respectively, the upper surface of said slots engaging said ribs with the canopy in the open position to limit pivotal movement of the ribs to a predetermined angular position relative to the shaft, and releasable means engaging the actuator and shaft to hold the actuator in position spaced from said end of said shaft and with the canopy in the open position.

5. An umbrella according to claim 4 wherein said releasable means comprises an elongated key carried by said shaft and said actuator includes a groove for cooperation with said key.

6. An umbrella comprising a shaft, a canopy secured at its center to one end of said shaft, an actuator slidably engaging said shaft, a plurality of radially disposed canopy supporting ribs each pivotally connected at one end to the actuator and at the other end to the periphery of the canopy, each of said ribs having end portions at an angle less than 180 relative to the remaining porr tion of the rib, said actuator being movable to and from positions on and adjoining the end of the shaft to which the canopy is secured to close and open the canopy respectively, means on said actuator engaging said ribs with the canopy in the open position to limit pivotal movement of the ribs to a predetermined angular position relative to the shaft, and releasable means engaging the actuator and shaft to hold the actuator in position spaced from said end of said shaft and with the canopy in the open position, said actuator including a sleeve, a plurality of spaced radially disposed segmental elements extending from one end of said sleeve, transverse root slots in said elements, means in said root slots pivotally securing said ribs to said sleeve with each rib extending outwardly between adjoining segmental elements.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS HARRISON R. MOSELEY, Primary Examiner.

Claims (1)

1. 4. AN UMBRELLA COMPRISING A SHAFT, A CANOPY SECURED AT ITS CENTER TO ONE END OF SAID SHAFT, AN ACTUATOR SLIDABLY ENGAGING SAID SHAFT, A PLURALITY OF RADIALLY DISPOSED CANOPY SUPPORTING RIBS EACH PIVOTALLY CONNECTED AT ONE END TO THE ACTUATOR AND AT THE OTHER END OF THE PERIPHERY OF THE CANOPY, SAID ACTUATOR HAVING AN ANNULAR FLANGED PORTION WITH A PLURALITY OF RADIALLY FORMED SLOTS IN THE UNDERSIDE THEREOF TO RECEIVE SAID RIBS, EACH OF SAID RIBS HAVING END PORTIONS AT AN ANGLE LESS THAN 180* RELATIVE TO THE REMAINING PORTION OF THE RIB, SAID ACTUATOR BEING MOVABLE TO AND FROM POSITIONS ON AND ADJOINING THE END OF THE SHAFT TO WHICH THE CANOPY IS SECURED TO CLOSE AND OPEN THE CANOPY RESPECTIVELY, THE UPPER SURFACE OF SIAD SLOTS ENGAGING SAID RIBS WITH THE CANOPY IN THE OPEN POSITION TO LIMIT PIVOTAL MOVEMENT OF THE RIBS TO A PREDETERMINED ANGULAR POSITION RELATIVE TO THE SHAFT, AND RELEASABLE MEANS ENGAGING THE ACTUATOR AND SHAFT TO HOLD THE ACTUATOR IN POSITION SPACED FROM SAID END OF SAID SHAFT AND WITH THE CANOPY IN THE OPEN POSITION.

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