WO2006090295A2

WO2006090295A2 - A device for detachably supporting an object

Info

Publication number: WO2006090295A2
Application number: PCT/IB2006/050110
Authority: WO
Inventors: Jens-Erik Christiansen
Original assignee: J.E.C. Consult Vejle Aps; Christiansen, Bente
Priority date: 2005-01-17
Filing date: 2006-01-12
Publication date: 2006-08-31
Also published as: WO2006090295A3; DK176478B1; WO2006090295B1; DK200500078A

Abstract

A device (1;11) for detachably supporting an object (37) and of the kind comprising a mainly tubular holder (2) having a first open end (3) for receiving a part (40) of the object (37) and a second end (4) facing the supporting base (38) and at least one support leg (6a, 6b, 6c) having a first end (8a, 8b, 8c) pivotally arranged in an area at the first end (3) of the holder. The tubular holder (2) has a tapered second end (4) which is displaced down into the supporting base (38) to thereby provide a central anchoring point in a both loose and solid supporting base. The device is easy to anchor solidly in the supporting base and still can be easily disengaged from this supporting base. The stand does not take up much space during storage and transport and it has a very great mounting and repositioning flexibility.

Description

A device for detachably supporting an object

The present invention relates to a device for detachably supporting an object and is of the kind that comprises a mainly tubular holder arranged for being pushed a distance down into a supporting base, the holder has an open first end for receiving a part of the object, a tapered second end facing the supporting base and displaced into the supporting base, and at least one support leg having a first end pivotally arranged in an area at the first end of the holder.

Different types of devices are known for holding an object such as e.g. a parasol, a flag, a mast, or similar object upright .

Known devices in form of e.g. parasol stands typically consist of partly a tubular holder into which the free end of a pole, which is the object, is pushed and partly a heavy base of e.g. cement or another heavy material for counterbalance to prevent e.g. a parasol from tipping over when it is subjected to stress loadings such as wind gusts. However, such parasol stands are very heavy to move around.

This application limitation is partly overcome by providing the parasol stand with a hollow base instead of a massive one that can be filled with a suitable material, such as e.g. water or sand, in using the parasol stand as counterbalance. Upon moving such a parasol stand, the base must be emptied completely or partly to reduce the weight of the stand, which is both time-consuming and difficult. The application of such a parasol stand furthermore depends on availability of a filler suited for creating the necessary counterweight.

A common problem of the above two types of parasol stands is that their application is limited to use on a hard surface into which they cannot sink, and their heavy weight and large size mean that most people are disinclined to bringing such a parasol stand to e.g. a beach or on a picnic. To this should be added that water, which is the preferred filler for a hollow base, does not have the necessary density for effectively making the base produce sufficient counterweight to prevent a parasol mounted therein from being overturned by e.g. a wind gust.

The parasol stand known from British Patent No. GB 2,360,045 has a bowl-shaped, tillable base and a holder for receiving the pole of the parasol. This known parasol stand can be brought to e.g. a beach and be filled with e.g. sand, buried in the sand to create counterweight and anchored by pushing the parasol pole through the holder and a distance into the sand. This known parasol stand is not expedient to use on e.g. a lawn as the filler is not immediately available and digging in the lawn is undesirable. In addition, fillers such as dirt or clay dirty the open base.

As alternatives to the above heavy, bulky and unmanageable parasol stands different kinds of earth rods having outside thread are known from e.g. German Patent No. DE 19839770, French Patents FR 2666109, FR 2686928, FR 2745480, and FR 2747148. These earth rods have to be laboriously screwed into a supporting base to ensure the necessary stability to securely hold the device mounted therein. Upon moving the earth rod, it has to be laboriously screwed out again. This process must be repeated every time the earth rod is moved. Furthermore, the necessary stability can only be obtained if the supporting base is solid, and earth rods can thus not be used on sand beaches or in other loose supporting bases.

From US Patent Application 2003/0079766 is known a simple, tubular parasol stand. The free end is cut off in an angle of about 60° to more easily be able to be pushed down into the supporting base. From European Patent EP 0 976 342 is known a parasol stand which can be collapsed. The stand has a tubular holder for receiving and fixing the free end of the parasol pole at a distance from the supporting base in order not to damage neither the supporting base nor the free end of the parasol stand. The stand furthermore has a number of support legs arranged displaceably around the free end. This parasol stand does not have weight to stabilize the stand during parasol use. Therefore, the free ends of each support leg are provided with a claw for anchoring the stand in the supporting base. By displacing the end of the support legs opposite the claws along the parasol pole, the claws can be anchored in or released from, respectively, the supporting layer. As this stand is only anchored at a very short depth in the supporting base, the support legs must in turn be long so that the radius of the anchor base is sufficiently large to prevent the claws from being pulled up by the slightest wind gust. Furthermore, the claws cannot alone provide the necessary stability and anchoring if the supporting base is e.g. loose sand.

From Dutch Patent Application NL 1016440 is known a parasol stand comprising two cylindrical parts, a lower cylinder part having a slender spear for securing in a supporting base, and an upper cylinder part mounted displaceably on the parasol pole before the free end of this pole is placed in the lower cylinder part. The distance between the two cylinder part is adjusted so that the spacing is so great that it is possible to swing the support legs hinged on the upper cylinder part to an angle sufficiently large for the feet of the support legs to be supported on the supporting base, that is in an angle which also contributes to preventing the parasol from toppling. The procedure of adjusting the distance between the two cylinder parts and the angle of the support legs must be repeated until the result is satisfying and the parasol located upright on the supporting base. In a first aspect according to the present invention a device of the kind mentioned in the opening paragraph is provided that can support and anchor an object such as a parasol, a mast, or an antenna quickly, easily and stably in both a loose and solid supporting base.

In a second aspect according to the present invention a device of the kind mentioned in the opening paragraph is provided that does not take up much room when not in use.

In a third aspect according to the present invention a device of the kind mentioned in the opening paragraph is provided that does not leave visible damages on the supporting base.

The novel and unique feature according to the invention, whereby this is achieved, is the fact that the second tapered end of the tubular holder is made by cutting off the pipe at an acute angle and that the support legs are pivotally connected to the holder through a coupling element detachably fastened on the first end of the holder.

A tubular, tapered holder can very easily be pushed into the supporting base as only very little material from the supporting base is to be displaced during pushing down. An additional advantage is that the material of the supporting base partly fills the pipe and partly surrounds the pipe. The material of the supporting base therefore exerts partly a force on the inside of the pipe and partly an opposing force on the exterior of the pipe effectively preventing the pipe from being pushed or displaced from side to side in the supporting base even when large forces act on a pole-shaped parts of the object mounted in the holder.

In a simple embodiment, the support legs can be mounted pivotally in mountings directly connected to the holder. In an even further preferred embodiment of the device according to the present invention the support legs are pivotally connected to the holder through a coupling element fastened on the first end of the holder. This coupling element can advantageously have a neck for mounting around the first end of the holder and a collar extending radially over this end and serving for limiting the swinging movement of the support legs which are suspended in seats made in mountings or attachments under the collar of the coupling element. In this embodiment, the support legs can be swung between a first collapsed position of the device, in which the support legs are arranged parallel to the longitudinal axis of the holder, to a maximally extended position of the device, in which the support legs are extending in an angle radially from the holder, that is mainly perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of this holder. Thus, the support legs can be placed in any desired angle between these extreme positions as required. For instance, the entire length of the support legs can be made to rest directly on a flat surface, giving the device the largest possible supporting surface area. In this case it is furthermore avoided that the support legs project and take up room above the surface and there is better access to the entire area under e.g. a parasol mounted in the device.

As not all devices necessarily have a part or section having a diameter fitting accurately enough for the pole not to rock sideways when mounted in the holder and thereby be standing stably in this holder, the device according to the invention can advantageously furthermore comprise a first insert detachably insertable in the neck pipe of the coupling element for reducing the inside diameter of the holder or coupling element .

To be able to use the device for different objects having different diameters the coupling element can furthermore comprise at least one second detachable insert insertable in the insert for further reducing the inside diameter of the coupling element.

To more easily be able to take hold around an insert during mounting or demounting, an insert can advantageously be made with a collar extending radially over either the collar on a second insert or the collar of the coupling element.

The side of an insert facing the object can advantageously have a neck pipe having webs extending in the longitudinal direction of the insert. When pushing a pole-shaped object down into the aperture of the neck pipe, the webs will provide a flexible aperture diameter and be deflected to some extend to provide space for the object even if this object has a slightly larger diameter than the aperture. Thus the webs will serve to effectively strengthen the hold around the pole- shaped object.

This fixative hold can furthermore be improved if the inside diameter of the aperture defined by the radial extend of the webs into the aperture of neck pipe is reduced gradually away from the collar.

The device according to the present invention can furthermore comprise a clamping screw for further ensure fixation of the device in the holder.

The free end of a support leg can be made with a through-going anchoring hole so that a peg, a wedge, or a spike can be used in a simple manner to retain the support legs in the optimum angle in relation to the holder, that is the angle giving the most stable and solid positioning of the device on the supporting base and the retention of the device in this base under the placing and mounting condition. The invention will be explained in greater details below, describing only exemplary embodiments with reference to the drawing, in which

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a first simple embodiment of the device according to the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a partly exploded, perspective view of a second embodiment of the device according to the invention;

Fig. 3 is a perspective, bottom view of a coupling element for the embodiment in fig. 2 of the device according to the present invention;

Fig. 4 is a partly exploded, perspective view on a larger scale showing how support leg and holder are mounted in the coupling element in the embodiment in fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of an insert having webs;

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the embodiment in fig. 2 mounted and ready for use with deflected support legs;

Fig. 7 is a perspective view of the device in use as parasol stand, and

Fig. 8 is a perspective view of the device in fig. 6 in collapsed state.

The invention is described and explained in the following on the exemplary assumption that the device is a parasol stand and the object is a parasol having a parasol pole.

The simple embodiment of a parasol stand 1 in fig. 1, which can be pushed into a supporting base, comprises a holder 2 in form of a pipe 2. The pipe 2 has an open first end 3 for receiving and holding an object (not shown) and a tapered second end 4 which is pushed down into a supporting base (not shown) to anchor the stand 1. At the first end 3 of the pipe 2 the stand 1 has, in this case, a total number of three suspension mountings 5a, 5b, 5c evenly distributed around the pipe, in which mountings support legs 6a, 6b, 6c are pivotally mounted by means of pins 7a, 7b, 7c extending through the mountings 5a, 5b, 5c and the first ends 8a, 8b, 8c of the support legs βa,6b,6c, respectively. Instead of pins 7a, 7b, 7c, the first ends 8a, 8b, 8c of the support legs 6a, βb, 6c can be mounted by means of e.g. split pins, lock rings, or bolts.

In the case shown, the support legs 6a, 6b, 6c can swing an angle α of between 0° and 180° in relation to the longitudinal axis of the pipe, which is shown in broken line in the figure. As the support legs 6a, 6b, 6c of this simple stand 1 can swing, it may be necessary to further secure the stand 1 in the supporting base by means of e.g. pegs or wedges that are pushed into the supporting base through anchoring holes 9a, 9b, 9c in the second, free end 10a, 10b, 10c of the support legs. Said second end 10a, 10b, 10c has a bent end part which is flattened to create a contact face on the support legs, which gives better support on the supporting base. The contact face furthermore contribute to preventing the support legs 6a, 6b, 6c from driving into the supporting base. An example of a support leg is an aluminium pipe, of which the extreme end part of the free, second end is flattened and bent e.g. an angle β of about 45° in relation to the longitudinal axis of the pipe.

The end 4 of the pipe 2 that is pushed into the supporting base is cut off in an angle φ of e.g. between 10° to 45° in relation to the longitudinal axis of the pipe. A typical angle φ is about 16°. Fig. 2 shows a partly exploded view of a second embodiment of a parasol stand 11 according to the present invention. This parasol stand is a further development of the parasol stand 1 in fig. 1, and like parts are referenced by the same reference numerals .

Thus, the parasol stand 11 comprises a holder 2 in form of a pipe 2 having an open, first end 3 and a tapered, second end 4. At the first end 3 is made a threaded hole 12 extending through the wall of the pipe 2, through this hole a corresponding clamp screw 13 having a knob 14 and a thread 15 can be screwed to further secure an elongated object located in the pipe 2, such as e.g. the parasol pole (not shown) . This fastening principle is well known from e.g. Christmas tree stands and will not be described further here.

The parasol stand 11 furthermore comprises a coupling element 16 shown on a larger scale in figs. 3 and 4, to which figures reference is now made for a detailed description of the structure of the coupling element 16.

The coupling element 16 has a neck 17 having a collar 18 extending radially from the neck. The neck 17 has three identical mountings 19a, 19b, 19c distributed evenly around the circumference and of which only one 19c is shown in fig. 4.

On assembling the parts 2,16 of the stand the neck 17 of the coupling element 16 is clamped around the upper end 3 of the pipe 2 so that the wall of the neck surrounds this end 3, that is the neck pipe 19 is mounted detachably in friction grip or permanently, by means of e.g. an adhesive, screws, shrinkage, or welding, around the first end part 3 of the pipe 2 so that the end edge 20 of this end part is located on the same level as the collar 18. Alternatively, the inside of the neck 17 can be made with e.g. groove or tongue to simply be clamped on and off correspondingly shaped grooves or tongues on the pipe 2. Yet another alternative comprises that the lower edge of the neck abuts on a circumferential projection on the pipe 2, which is made at a distance from the end edge 20 of the pipe 2 corresponding to the length of the neck. Finally, there are applications in which it is preferred to mount the coupling element a distance down on the pipe.

The mountings 19a, 19b, 19c comprises two tabs 21a', 21a I' I 21b', 2Ib'', 21c',21c'^; placed at a distance x from each other and extending radially out from the neck 17. The distance x is equal to or slightly larger than the outside diameter of a support legs 6a,βb,6c placed between the tabs 21a', 2Ia'', 21b' ,21b' ' , 21C ,21C ' .

A through-going cut-out section 23a', 23a'', 23b', 23b'', 23c', 23c'' is extending at a distance y, which is equal to or slightly smaller than the outside diameter of a support leg, from the lower edge 22 of the collar and into each tab 21a', 21a'⁷, 21b', 2Ib'', 21c',2lC'.,

As seen best in fig. 4, the first end 8c of the support leg 6c has, at a distance z which is equal to or slightly smaller than the distance y, a through-hole 24 which at mounting of the support leg 6c is positioned opposite the cut-out sections 23c', 23c'' and assembled to a pivotal connection with the tabs 21C₁2Ic'' of the mounting 19c by means of a split pin or connecting bolt 25 through the cut-out section 23c', the through-hole 24, and the cut-out section 23C ' , respectively. The support legs 6a, 6b is made correspondingly and is mounted in the same way. The distances x,y,z are thus chosen so that the support legs can swing the desired angle interval and preferably so that the maximum amount of swing is 90°.

The collar 18 furthermore has a collar hole 26a, 26b, 26c giving access to respective spaces between each set of tabs 21a' ,21a", 21b', 21b", 21c', 21c" and the legs 6a, 6b, 6c mounted therein. This access can e.g. be used at mounting of the support legs in the seats in form of the cut-out sections 23, a support leg being pushed up through the collar hole, a split pin being mounted through the hole 24 in the first end part 8 of a support leg 6, after which support leg and split pin 25 are pushed into the seat, potentially in a recess in the bottom of this seat. A defective split in or support leg can therefore easily be replaced.

If the distances y and z are chosen so that they are almost the same, the collar holes 26a, 26b, 26c furthermore provide space for a small part of the first end parts of the support legs when the legs are swung to the desired angle. The swinging movement can therefore take place completely unhindered. If a leg doubles or is damaged in any other way, it can easily be replaced through access through the collar holes. Collar holes are however not conditional to the invention, and the cut-out sections can alternatively merely be holes through the tabs.

To provide room for the clamping screw 13 the wall of the neck 17 also has a cut-out section 27.

There are parasol poles having many different diameters and a parasol pole with a small diameter will not be stably located in a holder with a large inside diameter. This problem is overcome according to the invention by the fact that the parasol stand 11 furthermore comprises, respectively, the first insert 28 having a neck 29 and a collar 30 shown in fig. 2, and a second insert 31 shown on a larger scale in fig. 4. In the neck wall of the first insert 28 is made a through-hole 32 for bringing the thread 15 of the clamping screw 13 into contact with an object located in the holder. This hole 32 is therefore located opposite the cut-out section 27 of the coupling element and the clamping screw 13. The neck 29 has an outside diameter corresponding to the inside diameter of the holder 2 and can therefore easily be inserted upon need.

The second insert 29 shown on a larger' scale in fig. 5 is dimensioned so that it is mounted directly in the holder 2 in a similar manner or via a first insert 28 already mounted in the holder.

The second insert 31 has a neck 33, a collar 34, a through- hole 35 in the neck for passage of the clamping screw 13 and seven webs 36 extending radially along the inside circumference of the neck pipe and optionally having an upward, radial extent away from the collar 34. One web is made slightly wider than the rest to provide a sufficient material thickness for and around the through-hole 35.

In fig. 6 is seen a ready stand 11 with mounted support legs 6a,6b,βc located in an angle of about 45° in relation to the longitudinal axis of the holder 2. A first insert 28 is ready for being mounted as described above with reference to fig. 2.

In fig. 7 an unfolded parasol 37 is located in the parasol stand 11 as described above. The holder 2 is pushed a distance down into a supporting base 38 in form of a lawn 38. The support legs βa,6b,βc are placed in an angle of about 45° in relation to the longitudinal axis of the holder 2 and further anchored in the lawn 38 by means of pegs 39a, 39b, 39c. The parasol pole 40 is tightly held in the holder 2 as the aperture of the insert 28 corresponds to the diameter of the parasol pole 40. The parasol pole 40 is further secured by means of the clamping screw 13, and a wind gust catching the skirt 41 of the parasol 37 will not affect the parasol to such an extent that it will overturn or take off.

When the stand 11 is not in use, the support legs 6a,βb,6c can simply be folded back to a position parallel to the longitudinal axis of the holder 2 as shown in fig. 8. In this state the stand takes up very little space.

The stand 11 is secured in a total of four points, giving the parasol 37 optimum stability and wind resistance and the stand great mounting and repositioning flexibility.

A very light parasol stand can be made of aluminium or hard plastic, giving the further advantage that the stand will not rust or corrode when subjected to salt and moisture from the surroundings .

A person skilled in the art will understand that devices having more support legs are within the scope of the invention, and that other object than parasols can be used with the device as long as this object comprises an elongated object fitting either in the holder or in an insert.

Claims

Claim

1. A device (1;11) for detachably supporting an object (37) and of the kind comprising a mainly tubular holder (2) arranged for being pushed a distance down into a supporting base (38), the holder (2) having a first open end (3) for receiving a part (40) of the object (37), a second tapered end (4) facing the supporting base (38), which is displaced down into the supporting base (38), and at least one support leg (6a,6b,βc) having a first end (8a, 8b, 8c) pivotally arranged in an area at the first end (3) of the holder, characterized in that the second tapered end (4) of the tubular holder (2) is made by cutting off the pipe in an acute angle, and that the support legs (6a,βb,βc) are pivotally connected to the holder (2) via a coupling element (16) detachably secured on the first end (3) of the holder (2) .

2. A device (11) according to claim 1, characterized in that the coupling element (16) comprises a neck (17) mounted around the first end (3) of the holder (2) having a collar (18) extending radially over the first end (3) of the holder (2), and mountings (19a, 19b, 19c) made on the coupling element (16) under the collar (18) having seats (23a, 23b, 23c) for pivotal mounting of the support legs (6a, 6b, 6c) .

3. A device (11) according to claim 1 or 2 , characterized in that the coupling element (16) furthermore comprises a first insert (28) detachably insertable in the neck pipe of the neck (17) of the coupling element (16) for reducing the inside diameter of the holder (2) or the coupling element (16) .

4. A device (11) according to claim 1, 2 or 3, characterized in that the coupling element (16) furthermore comprises at least one second insert (31) detachably insertable in the insert (28) for further reducing the inside diameter of the coupling element (16) .

5. A device (11) according to claim 3 or 4, characterized in that an insert has a neck having a neck pipe, the aperture of which is made with webs extending in the longitudinal central axis of the insert.

6. A device (11) according to claim 5, characterized in that the inside diameter of an insert (28; 31) is gradually reduced in direction towards the second end (4) of the holder (2) .

7. A device (11) according to any of the claims 3-6, characterized in that an insert (28; 29) has a collar (30; 34) extending radially over the collar (18) of the coupling element (2) .

8. A device (11) according to any of the claims 1-7, characterized in that the device (11) furthermore comprises a clamping screw (13) for perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the holder (2) clamping the object (37) placed in the holder (2) .

9. A device (11) according to any of the claims 1-8, characterized in that the free end (10a, 10b, 10c) of a support leg (6a, 6b, 6c) has a through-going anchoring hole (9a, 9b, 9c) .