AU2005200707A1

AU2005200707A1 - Portable banner support arrangement

Info

Publication number: AU2005200707A1
Application number: AU2005200707A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Gary John Edwards; Phillip Raymond Richards
Original assignee: PHILLIP RICHARDS
Current assignee: PHILLIP RICHARDS
Priority date: 2005-02-17
Filing date: 2005-02-17
Publication date: 2007-02-15
Also published as: WO2006086847A1

Description

55836 PAB:JPH P/00/011 AUSTRALIA Regulation 3.2 Patents Act 1990 COMPLETE

SPECIFICATION

FOR A STANDARD

PATENT

ORIGINAL

Name of Applicant: GARY JOHN EDWARDS and PHILLIP RAYMOND RICHARDS Name of inventor(s): GARY JOHN EDWARDS and PHILLIP RAYMOND RICHARDS Address for Service: COLLISON CO.,117 King William Street, Adelaide, S.A. 5000 Invention Title: PORTABLE BANNER SUPPORT

ARRANGEMENT

Details of Associated Provisional Applications: Australian Provisional Application No 2005900292 Dated 25 January 2005 The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing It known to us: The present invention relates to a portable banner support arrangement.

Portable banner stands of the kind that include a stand, and a generally vertically suspended banner, are an effective means of drawing attention to a product or service in sales and marketing situations, such as at tradeshows.

At such events however it is now common to see a great many of these banner stands, and the impact of any one particular stand therefore is lessened.

It is considered that a curved banner provides considerably more impact than a conventional flat banner arrangement. In particular, people approaching a flat banner from one side or another might walk straight past it without ever looking at it. There are systems available, such as the 'Spider' system, which allow the display to be curved, but these are large and complex, and therefore expensive to purchase and complicated to erect.

It is an object of the present invention to provides a portable banner support arrangement that overcomes or at least substantially ameliorates the problems associated with the portable banner stands of the prior art.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a portable banner support that supports the banner so as to effect a curving of the banner.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein, by way of illustration and example, an embodiment of the present invention is disclosed.

In one form of this invention although this may not necessarily be the only or indeed the broadest form of this there is proposed a banner support arrangement of a type having a base, a lower transverse member interengaging with the base, a resilient support member supported by and extending from the base to an upper support location where the resilient support member supports an upper transverse member, and there being a sheet of material supported by and between the upper and lower transverse members, characterised in that the respective upper and lower transverse members support the sheet of material so that it is caused to follow a curved shape from a one side to an opposite side.

Preferably, the upper transverse member is an elongate member, which follows a curved path from a first end to its opposite end, and the lower transverse member is an elongate member, which follows a curved path from a first end to its opposite end.

Preferably, the respective curved paths followed by the transverse members are of the same length, and shape.

Preferably, the curved shape adopted by the sheet of material is concave when viewed from the front.

Preferably, the curved shape adopted by the sheet of material is convex when viewed from the front.

Preferably, the sheet of material has at least one eyelet formed into each of its ends, and each of these eyelets is adapted to be disposed upon a transverse member.

In a further form, the invention may be said to lie in a method of assembling the banner support arrangement, the method including the steps of assembling the base and resilient support member, attaching the sheet of material to the transverse elements, and attaching the transverse elements to the base and resilient support member so that these support the sheet of material so as to effect a curving of the sheet.

For a better understanding of this invention it will now be described with respect to the preferred embodiment which shall be described herein with the assistance of drawings wherein; Figure 1 is a rear perspective view of the banner support arrangement; Figure 2 is a front perspective view of the banner support arrangement; Figure 3 is a detail cross-sectional view through the upper support element; at point B and Figures 4 and 5 are detail cross-sectional views through the lower support element at point C.

Now referring to the illustrations, and in particular to Figure 1, there is a banner support arrangement 1 including a pair of metal, ground engaging feet 2 that together create a base. The feet engage one another at one end, such that they subtend an angle A between them. The base incorporates a collar 4 located at the vertex created by the feet; this collar is adapted to receive the upright resilient support member 6.

The upright resilient support member 6 is comprised of a pair of flexible, glass fibre reinforced plastic resin rods 8, each of which is straight when in an unstressed state. The rods are joined using a tube socket 10, and the lowermost end 12 of the assembled upright 6 is inserted into the collar 4 provided by the base.

The banner itself is a sheet of material 14, at each end of the sheet of materiall4 it is supported by a transverse member 16, each of which passes through a loop 18 in the end of the sheet. Each of these transverse members is curved so that once they are inserted through the loops 18 in the ends of the sheet 14, they will effect a curving of the sheet from one side of the sheet 14 to an opposite side.

The upper transverse member 16 includes a boss 20, which acts as an upper support location adapted to receive the threaded upper end 21 of the upright 6. This boss 20 protrudes through a hole 22 formed in the loop 18 of the sheet. The boss 20 is fixed to the upper transverse member 16 such that when the boss is disposed upon the threaded upper end of the upright 6 in an upper support location, the upper transverse member 16 is correctly orientated with respect to the ground, this ensures that the sheet of material 14 is caused to follow the desired shape of the member, which in this case is convex in the vertical plane.

The lower transverse member 16 is retained by the feet 2 of the stand, each of which has a slot 24 formed into it near its nose. There is a catch 30 pivotally attached to each of the feet 2, each catch having a nose portion 32 adapted to guard and enclose the slot 24 in the foot, thereby capturing the lower transverse member 16. The leading edge 34 of the nose on the catch 30 has a downward angle to it; in use then, as the lower transverse member 16 contacts the downwardly angled portion of the catch 30 it drives the catch up until it passes the nose of the catch, at which point the catch drops, capturing the transverse member 16 in the slot 24. Once inserted into the slot 24, the catch 30 will prevent the transverse member 16 from inadvertently escaping the slot 24. The sheet 14 has relief slots 26 cut into it, which will allow the nose portion of each foot above the slot to protrude through the respective relief slot.

Once assembled, the upright resilient support member 6 maintains a slight tension in the sheet of material 14 by virtue of the fact that the upright resilient support member 6 wants to straighten itself, this keeps the sheet 14 looking taught and free of any distortion.

An advantage of the banner support arrangement according to the present invention is that the stand 1, inclusive of the feet 2 and the upright resilient support member 6, is substantially hidden by the banner when assembled; this can be seen in Figure 2. This effect then, combined with the curvature of the banner sheet 14, is impressive, with the banner sheet appearing to be standing on its own. Given that these banners are used for commercial purposes, these visual effects are of significant value.

When the stand 1 is disassembled, even the longest pieces are of such a length that these can be stored and transported easily. Furthermore, because the transverse members 16 can be removed from the loops in the sheet of material, the sheet of material 14 can be flattened and rolled up in a conventional manner.

Although the invention has been herein shown and described in what is conceived to be the most practical and preferred embodiment, it is recognised that departures can be made within the scope of the invention, which is not to be limited to the details described herein but is to be accorded the full scope of the appended claims so as to embrace any and all equivalent devices and apparatus.

Claims

1. A banner support arrangement of a type having a base, a lower transverse member interengaging with the base, a resilient support member supported by and extending from the base to an upper support location where the resilient support member supports an upper transverse member, and there being a sheet of material supported by and between the upper and lower transverse members, characterised in that the respective upper and lower transverse members support the sheet of material so that it is caused to follow a curved shape from a one side to an opposite side.

2. The banner support arrangement as in the immediately preceding claim further characterized in that the upper transverse member is an elongate member, which follows a curved path from a first end to its opposite end, and the lower transverse member is an elongate member, which follows a curved path from a first end to its opposite end.

3. The banner support arrangement as in any one of the preceding claims further characterized in that the respective curved paths followed by the transverse members are of the same length, and shape.

4. The banner support arrangement as in any one of the preceding claims further characterized in that the curved shape adopted by the sheet of material is concave when viewed from the front.

The banner support arrangement as in any one of claims 1 to 3 further characterized in that the curved shape adopted by the sheet of material is convex when viewed from the front.

6. The banner support arrangement as in any one of the preceding claims further characterized in that the sheet of material has at least one eyelet formed into each of its ends, and each of these eyelets is adapted to be disposed upon a transverse member.

7. A method of assembling the banner support arrangement, the method including the steps of assembling the base and resilient support member, attaching the sheet of material to the transverse elements, and attaching the transverse elements to the base and resilient support member so that these support the sheet of material so as to effect a curving of the sheet.

8. A banner support arrangement substantially as described in the specification with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying representations.

9. A method substantially as described in the specification with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying representations. Dated this 17th day of February 2005 GARY JOHN EDWARDS and PHILLIP RAYMOND RICHARDS By their Patent Attorneys COLLISON CO