US3765433A

US3765433A - Disposable umbrella

Info

Publication number: US3765433A
Application number: US00212145A
Authority: US
Inventors: M Futamura; A Ookuma
Original assignee: Nakanihon Sangyo Co Ltd
Current assignee: Nakanihon Sangyo Co Ltd
Priority date: 1971-12-27
Filing date: 1971-12-27
Publication date: 1973-10-16
Anticipated expiration: 1990-10-16

Abstract

A disposable umbrella comprising a hollow shaft, a sliding member slidably fitted around said shaft, means radially extending from the upper portion of said sliding member and adapted to attach the main ribs of said umbrella to said sliding member, means for keeping said sliding member in its lowered position on said shaft and thereby maintaining said umbrella in its unfurled position while said umbrella is in use, means for restricting the upward movement of said main ribs from their substantially horizontal position while said umbrella is in use, and means for fixing the central part of a water-proof covering for said umbrella to the uppermost portion of said shaft.

Description

United States Patent Futamura et al.

[ Oct. 16, 1973 [5 DISPOSABLE UMBRELLA 2,667,884 2/1954 Bruno etal. 135/20 R [75] Inventors: Masaharu Futamura, Atsutaka Ookuma both of Nagoya Japan Primary Exammer.l. Karl Attorney-Oltsch & Knoblock [73] Ass1gnee: Nakanihon Sangyo Company, 1 Limited, Nagoya, Japan. [57] ABSTRACT 22 F1led: Dec. 27, 1971 A d1sposable umbrella comprising a hollow shaft, a [211 Appl- N05 212,145 sliding member slidablyfitted around said shaft, means radially extending from the upper portion of 52 us. c1. 135/20 R, 135/195 a Sliding member and adapted to attach the min 51 1m. 01. A45b 13/00, A45b 19/00 ribsofsaid umbrellamsaidsliding membflvmeansfor 58 Field of Search 135/20, 19.5, 25, keeping Said Sliding member in its lowered Position 1 3 5 Q6 28, 44 said shaft and thereby maintaining said umbrella'in its unfurled position while said umbrella is in use, means 5 I References Cited for restricting the upward movement of said main ribs UNITED STATES PATENTS from their substantially horizontal position while said 1 umbrella is in use, and means for fixing the central 135/20 R part of a water-proof covering for said umbrella to the 4398 4: uppennost portion of said shaft. 2,024,946 12/1935 Morgenstern 135/20 R 5 Claims, 10 Drawing Figures a 2 b A l I A 7 7 21 I? v L 3*2 K 1 y 4 I 8 2O 1O 13 a 1 3a 3a 5 PMENTEnum 1619B 3.765433 SHEET NF 3 28. 5 I 2 b J 7 A WFNIEDUU 161915 3.765433 sum 20$ 3 PATENTEDIIBI 16 um 3Q 765L433 sum 3 or; 3

DISPOSABLE UMBRELLA This invention relates to a disposable umbrella of simple construction which is essentially made of synthetic resin, can be manufactured on a massproduction basis, and accordingly, is low-priced. The structural parts of the umbrella known in the prior art has generally been made of metals, and accordingly, the umbrella of the prior art has been so rigid in construction that it remains durable over a long period of time. It is, however, relatively expensive, and accordingly, is not suitable to be kept at a store, a bar, a station or the like for free disposal by its clients.

It is, therefore, an object of this invention to provide a disposable umbrella which is low-priced, and suitable as a gift to a customer for his temporary use.

The umbrella according to this invention is very simple in construction, and functions positively when it is furled or unfurled. It is quite easy to manufacture; therefore, it is suitable for mass-production. Furthermore, the umbrella of this invention is very suitable to be kept at a store or the like as a gift to a client, because it can be more abundantly and cheaply manufactured in a shorter period of time than any conventional umbrellas, and is capable of withstanding use in a rainy storm in spite of its extremely simple construction.

A preferred embodiment of the umbrella according to this invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a vertical cross-sectional view of a first preferred embodiment of the umbrella according to this invention, in which the umbrella is shown in its unfurled position;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the upper portion of the shaft of the umbrella shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a front elevational view of the means for attaching the main ribs of the umbrella shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a plan view of the means shown in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a detailed cross-sectional view of that portion of the umbrella shown in FIG. 1 in which a circumferential corner of the water-proof covering is fixed to the outer end of a main rib;

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA of FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 is a vertical cross-sectional view of a second preferred embodiment of the umbrella according to this invention, in which the umbrella is shown in'its unfurled position;

FIG. 8 is a vertical cross-sectional view of a third preferred embodiment of the umbrella according to this invention, in which the umbrella is shown in its unfurled position;

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view taken along line B-B of FIG. 8; and

FIG. 10 is a view similar to FIG. 4, and showing a modified form of the means shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4.

Referring to FIG. 1 through FIG. 6 of the drawings showing a first preferred embodiment of the umbrella according to this invention, the numeral 1 designates a hollow umbrella shaft which is generally square in cross section, and is preferably made of synthetic resin. The

shaft 1 is provided with a slit 1a of a predetermined length extending from the upper end of the shaft 1 down to an intermediate position thereof along the centerline of one if its side walls. A circular hook block 2 which is made of synthetic resin includes a hollow square shaft 2a extending downward from the center thereof. The shaft 2a is inserted in the upper end of an elongated hole 23 provided through the shaft 1, and thereby holds the block 2 in position on the shaft 1. Six equally spaced hooking noses 2b are radially projected from the outer edge of the block 2. A cylindrical sliding member 3, which is made of of synthetic resin and is relatively small in length, is slidably fitted around the shaft 1, and is provided longitudinally thereof with a through hole 4 which substantially corresponds in cross section with the sectional profile of the shaft 1. A hooking piece 5 extends inwardly from the lower edge of the sliding member 3, and is slidably fitted in the slit la of the shaft 1, projecting into the longitudinal hole 23 thereof.

Six equally spaced hinging pieces 6 are radially extended from the upper portion of the sliding member 3. The hinging pieces 6 are each provided at one end thereof with a substantially flat end portion 7 which hinges the piece 6 on the sliding member 3. Provided below each of the six hinging pieces 6 is a hooking piece 3a projecting radially from the sliding member 3. Each of the six hooking pieces 3a is adapted to hook one end of a string 8 fastened at the other end thereof to an appropriate position of a corresponding main rib 10 of the umbrella. When the umbrella is in its unfurled position, the six strings 8 are tightly stretched and prevent the upward movement of the main ribs 10 from the substantially horizontal position in which the main ribs are required to stay while the umbrella is in use. Each hinging piece 6 is formed at the outer portion 9 thereof with a hole 11 in which a corresponding main rib 10 is received. A stopper 12 is provided on the outer surface of the slidingmember 3 and between every two adjoining hinging pieces 6 to substantially restrict the sidewise swinging movement of the hinging pieces 6. The outer end of each mainrib 10 is received in the inner hole 13b of a corresponding attaching'piece 13. The attaching pieces 13 are made 'of synthetic resin, and each of them has an annular groove 13a formed around the substantially round central portion thereof.

A water-proof covering 14 is stretched over one edge of eachattaching piece 13, and each of thecircumferential corner portions of the water-proof covering 14 is received in a corresponding annular groove 13a. A ring-shaped insert 15 having a circumferential groove thereon is inserted in the annular groove 13a with said circumferential groove engaged with an annular projection formed on the inner surface of the groove 13a to ensure connection between the attaching piece 13 and the water-proof covering 14.

The central part of the water-proof covering 14 is received in a longitudinal hole 20 provided through the hollow square shaft 2a of the hook block 2, and a cap 16 having an insert 16a projecting downward from the center thereof is inserted into the hollow shaft 2a over the water-proof covering 14 via the insert 16a. A grip 17 made of synthetic resin is fitted around the lower end of the shaft 1. A cap 18 having a hook 18a is attached to the lower end of the grip 17, said hook 18a projecting into the grip 17 and further into the shaft 1. A string 19 of rubber or other elastic material is stretched between. the end of the hook 18a and the hooked end portion 5 of the sliding member 3.

Each main rib 10 is provided intermediate the ends thereof with a small notch 20, and a string 21 of rubber or other elastic material is stretched between the notch 20 and -the hooking nose 2b of the hook block 2. A locking ring 22 is slidably fitted around the shaft 1, and adapted to hold the outer ends of the main ribs 10 within its flange 22a when the umbrella is closed. When the umbrella is opened, the main ribs 10 are in their substantially horizontal position, or in other words, substantially perpendicular to the shaft 1. The strings 8 are tightly stretched, and prevent the upward rotation of the main ribs 10 which might otherwise be caused by the tension of the elastic strings 21, or the force of wind, or the like. The sliding member 3 is urged downward by the elastic strings 19 stretched between the hook 5' and the hooked end portion 18a, and the hooked end portion 5 of the sliding member 3 rests on the lower end of the slit la of the shaft 1. The waterproof covering 14 is tightly held at the central portion thereof by the cap 16 and the hook block 2, and the six circumferential corner portions of the covering 14 are securely held by the attaching pieces 13 and the inserts 15, so that the umbrella is capable of withstanding strong pressure of wind and rain.

When the sliding member 3 is manually moved upward along the shaft 1 resisting the tension of the string 19, the umbrella is furled. Since the main ribs are prevented from opening by the flange 22a of the ring 22, the umbrella is kept in its furled position. Accordingly, if the ring 22 is moved down along the shaft 1 to release the outer ends of the main ribs 10 from the ring 22, the umbrella is automatically opened. It will be noted that the strings 8 may be replaced by flexible metal wires or the like to hold the main ribs 10 in their substantially horizontal position while the umbrella is in use. Moreover, the lower ends of the elastic strings .21 may be fastened to the outer ends of the main ribs 10 instead of the intermediate positions thereof. The strings 21 may even be removed without substantially affecting the functions of the umbrella according to this invention. 7

Reference will now be made in particular to FIG. 7 to describe a second preferred embodiment of the umbrella according to this invention. The shaft l is an elongated hollow member having a square section and made of synthetic resin. A circular locking block 35 made of synthetic resin and having a hollow square locking shaft 35a projecting downward from the center of the lower surface of the block 35 is inserted via its shaft 35a into the upper end of the longitudinalhole 23 of the shaft 1. A considerably elongated cylindrical sliding member 30 made of synthetic resin, and having a little smaller length than the shaft 1, has a through hole 4 with substantially the same cross sectional area as the shaft 1, and is fitted slidably around the shaft 1. Six equally spaced hinging pieces 6 are radially extended from the upper end of the sliding member 30, and attached via their substantially flat end portions 7 to the sliding member 30. Six equally spaced hooking pieces 3a are radially projected from the sliding member 30 intermediate the ends thereof in such a manner that one hooking piece 34 is situated exactly below one hinging piece 6. Each hooking piece 3a hooks one end of a string 8 fastened at its other end to an appropriate position of a corresponding main rib 10 of the umand is adapted to receive therein the inner end portion of a corresponding main rib 10 of the umbrella.

A stopper (not shown) isprovided on the sliding member 30 and between every two adjoining hinging pieces 6 to restrict the sidewise swinging movement of the hinging pieces 6. The lower end of the sliding member 30 is formed on one side thereof with a lateral projection 31. The outer end of each main rib 10 is received in the inner hole 13a of a corresponding attaching piece 13, and the water-proof covering 14 is securely held by the inserts 15 in the same manner as has hereinbefore been described in connection with the first preferred embodiment of this invention. The locking shaft 350 is inserted into the upper end of the hole 23 of the shaft 1, and the central portion of the waterproof covering 14 is pressed into the hole 35b of the shaft 35a and held therein by a cap 16 having a lower projecting end portion 16a inserted into the shaft 35a. A grip 32 is fitted around the lower end of the shaft 1, and an elastic hooking member 33 made of synthetic resin and having an upper hooking end portion 33a is secured to one side of the grip 32 intermediate the ends thereof. A locking ring 22 is slidably fitted around the shaft 1 intermediate the ends thereof, and is adapted to hold the outer ends of the main ribs 10 within its flange 22a when the umbrella is closed. A stopper 34 provided on the shaft 1 close to the upper end thereof prevents the excessive upward movement of the slidingmember 30 along the shaft 1 when the umbrella is closed.

The strings 8, which may be replaced by flexible metal wires or any other similar material, are tightly stretched between the hooking pieces 3a of the sliding member 30 and the main ribs 10, and restrict the further upward rotation of the main ribs 10 from their substantially horizontal position when the umbrella is opened. When the sliding member 30 is lowered until it abuts against the upper end of the grip 32, the hooking end portion 33a of the hooking member 33 is engaged with the lower end projection 31 of the sliding member 30, whereby the sliding member 30 is prevented from moving upward and thereby causing the umbrella to close. The water-proof covering 14 is securely held at the central portion thereof by the cap 16 and the hook block 35, and the six circumferential corner portions thereof are secured by the attaching pieces 13 and the inserts 15, so that the umbrella according to this invention is capable of withstanding the strong pressure of rain and wind.

The umbrella is brought into its fully closed position when the hooking member 33 is disengaged from the lower end hooked portion 31 of the sliding member 30 and the sliding member 30 is manually raised along the shaft 1 until it abuts against the stopper 34 provided adjacent to the upper end of the shaft 1. The outer ends of the main ribs 10 are locked within the flange 22a of the locking ring 22. When the umbrella is to be opened, the ring 22 is lowered to release the outer ends of the main ribs 10, and the hooking member 33 is engaged with the lower end hooked portion 31 of the sliding member 30 after the sliding member 30 is lowered until it abuts against the upper end of the grip 32. It will be noted that the hooking means 31 provided at the lower end of the sliding member 30 may instead be provided on the upper end of the grip 32, while the hooking member 33 now provided on the grip 32 may instead be attached to the lower end of the sliding member 30. Furthermore, it may be useful to provide stopper means adapted to restrict the movement of the sliding member 30 either in the upward or the downward direction along the shaft 1 while the umbrella is in its opened position.

Attention will now be directed to FlGS. 8 and 9 of the drawings to describe a third preferred embodiment of the umbrella according to this invention. The shaft 1 of the umbrella is a hollow square shaft made of synthetic resin, and has a slit la of a required length extending from the upper end of the shaft 1 down to an intermediate position thereof. The slit 1a is longitudinally out along one side wall of the shaft 1. A relatively short cylindrical sliding member 3 made of synthetic resin is slidably fitted around the shaft 1. The sliding member 3 has a hole 4 provided longitudinally therethrough, and the hole 4 has substantially the same cross-sectional area as the shaft 1. The member 3 is provided at the lower end thereof with a hooked end portion 5, and the lower end hooked portion 5 projects through the slit 1a into the longitudinal hole 23 of the shaft 1.

Six equally spaced hinging pieces 6 are radially projected from the upper end portion of the sliding member 3, and fastened to the sliding member 3 by their substantially fiat end portions 7. Each hinging piece 6 is provided through the outer end portion 9 thereof with a hole 11 which is adapted to receive the inner end of a corresponding main rib of the umbrella. A stopper (not shown) is provided on the upper end portion of the sliding member 3 between every two adjoining hinging pieces 6 to restrict the sidewise swinging movement of the hinging pieces 6 when the umbrella is in its opened position. Six equally spaced hooking pieces 3a are radially projected from the lower end portion of the sliding member 3 in such a manner that one hooking piece is located below one hinging piece 6. Each hooking piece 3a is adapted to hook one end ofa string 8 fastened at the other end thereof to an appropriate position of a corresponding main rib 10 of the umbrella. When the umbrella is in its unfurled position, the strings 8 are tightly stretched, and thereby restrict the upward rotation of the main ribs 10 from their substantially horizontal position in which the main ribs 10 are substantially 'perpendicualr to the shaft 1 of the umbrella. The central portion ofa water-proof covering 14 made of vinyl is pressed by a cap 40 into the upper end of the longitudinal hole 23 of the shaft 1, and six circumferential corner portions of the covering 14 are fastened to the outer ends of the main ribs 10 by pieces of thread. The cap 40 has a curved hook 40a projecting downward from the underside thereof. A grip 42 is fitted around the lower end portion of the shaft 1. The grip 42 has a portion 420 of increased diameter toward its lower end, and a through hole 43 and a slit 44 communicating with said hole 43 are provided vertically through said thucker portion 42a of the grip 42. The grip 42 is provided on the bottom surfaces thereof with a substantially semi-spherical concave 45 communicating with the slit 44. The concave 45 is adapted to receive therein a spherical stopper member 46 of a smaller diameter than that of the hole 43. A string 47 is fastened at the lower end thereof to the upper'portion of the spherical stopper 46 and at the upper end thereof to the hooked end portion 5 of the sliding member 3. The lower end of the stopper ball 46 is connected via a string 48 to a pull ring 49. A string 50 of rubber or other elastic material stretched between the hook 40a and the hooked end portion 5 of the sliding member 3 urges the sliding member 3 upward, while the string 47 acts to hold down the sliding member 3. Thus, the lower end of the sliding member 3 is very close to the lower end of the slit 1a of the shaft 1. A stopper 34 provided adjacent the upper end of the shaft 1 prevents the excessive upward movement of the sliding member 3 when the umbrella is closed. A locking ring 22 is fitted slidably over the shaft 1 between the sliding member 3 and the grip 42, and is formed with a circumferential flange 22a which is adapted to hold together the outer ends of the main ribs 10 when the umbrella is closed.

When the umbrella is opened, the main ribs 10 thereof are in.their substantially horizontal position, and the strings 8 act to restrict the upward rotation of the main ribs 10 which might otherwise be caused by the pressure of wind acting on the covering 14 of the umbrella. The sliding member 3 is constantly urged upward by the elastic string 50, while the string 47 stretched between the hooked end portion 5 of the sliding member 3 and the ball-shaped stopper 46 located in the concave 45 at the lower end of the grip 42 acts to restrict the upward movement of the sliding member 3, and keeps the lower end of the sliding member 3 very close to the lower end of the slit 1a of the shaft 1. The tensile force of the covering 14 prevents the downward rotation of the main ribs 10. Thus, the umbrella according to this invention can withstand use under strong pressure of wind and rain.

In order to close the umbrella, the pull ring 49 is pulled down against the elastic force of the string 50 to remove the stopper 46 from the concave 45. The stopper 46 is then caused to move up through the hole 43 of the grip 42 as shown by broken lines in FIG. 8 when the pull ring 49 is released. At the same time, the sliding member 3 is brought to its raised position by the contraction of the string 50, and abuts against the stopper 34. Then, the outer ends of the main ribs 10 may be held together by the ring 22. On the other hand, in order to open the umbrella, the outer ends of the main ribs 10 are released from the ring 22 by pressing down the ring 22, and the stopper 46 is removed from the hole 43 of the grip 42 into the concave 45 by pulling down the pull ring 49 and shifting it slightly toward the left in FIG. 8. The sliding member 3 is thus pulled down to its lowered position where the umbrella is opened. It will be observed that the strings 8 may be replaced by flexible metal wires or any other similar means adapted to restrict the upward rotation of the main ribs 10 of the umbrella from their substantially horizontal position when the umbrella is opened.

Referring to FIG. 10 of the drawings, it should be noted that the strings 8 or any substitute means therefor may be eliminated without causing any appreciable upward rotation of the main ribs 10 when the umbrella is in its opened position if the stoppers 12 are formed with a widened cross section as shown in FIG. 10 to strictly restrict the sidewise swinging movement of the hinging pieces 6, and if the main ribs 10 are designed to have a sufficiently large bending stiffness. In this case, it will be observed that should one of the main ribs 10 tend to be urged upward due to the force of wind or the like, the water-proof covering 14 of the umbrella would tend to pull the adjoining ribs toward said one rib, but that the bending stiffness of such ribs would substantially prevent the lateral movement thereof, hence restricting the upward movement of any of the main ribs 10 from its substantially horizontal position.

What is claimed is:

1. A disposable umbrella comprising in combination, an elongated shaft, a member slidable longitudinally on said shaft, a plurality of elongated ribs pivoted to the upperend of said slidable member and adapted to project substantially radially therefrom and substantially equally spaced, a waterproof covering spread over and fastened to the outer ends of said ribs and centrally fastened to said shaft'above said slidable member, means for positioning said shiftable member on said shaft to radially extend said ribs and unfurl said covering, and a plurality of strings each connected to said slidable member spaced below said rib pivot and connected to a rib spaced from the pivot of the rib to the slidable member, said strings serving to restrain upward swingin g of said ribs from operative radial position, said shaft being hollow and having a longitudinal slit in the upper portion of one side wall thereof, said sliding member having an inwardly projecting hook portion projecting through said slit into said shaft, said positioning means including a second string connected to said hook portion and extending through said shaft, and a hand gripconnected to said second string and projecting from the lower end of said shaft.

2. The invention as defined in claim 1, wherein said second string is elastic and is stretched between said hook portion and said hand grip.

3. The invention as defined in claim 1, wherein said sliding member is somewhat shorter in length than said shaft, and said positioning means comrpises a lateral projecting portion carried by one of said sliding member and said shaft, and a hooking member secured to the other of said slidable member and said shaft and adapted to releasably engage said projecting portion.

4. The invention as defined in claim 1, wherein said positioning means includes said grip member on the end of said shaft provided with a passage therethrough, a slit communicating with said passage and an end socket communicating with said slit, and a stopper member secured to said second string member and adapted to seat in said socket.

5. The invention as defined in claim 4, wherein a cap member secures the central portion of said water-proof covering to the upper end of said shaft and includes a hook extending into said shaft, and an elastic second string member is stretched between the hook of said cap and said inwardly projecting hook portion of said sliding member to automatically close said umbrella when said stopper member is released from said socket and located in said passage of said grip member.

Claims

1. A disposable umbrella comprising in combination, an elongated shaft, a member slidable longitudinally on said shaft, a plurality of elongated ribs pivoted to the upper end of said slidable member and adapted to project substantially radially therefrom and substantially equally spaced, a waterproof covering spread over and fastened to the outer ends of said ribs and centrally fastened to said shaft above said slidable member, means for positioning said shiftable member on said shaft to radially extend said ribs and unfurl said covering, and a plurality of strings each connected to said slidable member spaced below said rib pivot and connected to a rib spaced from the pivot of the rib to the slidable member, said strings serving to restrain upward swinging of said ribs from operative radial position, said shaft being hollow and having a longitudinal slit in the upper portion of one side wall thereof, said sliding member having an inwardly projecting hook portion projecting through said slit into said shaft, said positioning means including a second string connected to said hook portion and extending through said shaft, and a hand grip connected to said second string and projecting from the lower End of said shaft.

3. The invention as defined in claim 1, wherein said sliding member is somewhat shorter in length than said shaft, and said positioning means comprises a lateral projecting portion carried by one of said sliding member and said shaft, and a hooking member secured to the other of said slidable member and said shaft and adapted to releasably engage said projecting portion.