UMBRELLA STRUCTURE

Abstract

The umbrella structure contains a tubular member, a central shaft whose bottom section is sleeved in the tubular member, an upper next fixedly configured at a top end of the central shaft, a lower nest slidably configured along the central shaft in the other section without the tubular member, a number of collapsible ribs radially arranged around and pinned joined to the upper nest, and a number of stretchers connecting the ribs to the lower nest.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention generally relates to umbrellas and more particularly to an umbrella structure whose components are all made of plastic materials.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART

Some disadvantages of a conventional umbrella can be summarized as follows. First, the rib structure is usually made of some metallic material for better strength. However, metallic ribs also mean heavier weight and inferior convenience. In addition, pointed metallic ribs present a potential safety hazard to the user.

Secondly, other than the ribs, quite a few other components such as the central shaft, the bolts joining the rib sections, and the connecting wires, etc., are also made of metallic materials. These metallic components inevitably would have rust problems. The rusted components not only affect the appearance of the umbrella but also hinder the operation of the umbrella.

Thirdly, these metallic components are difficult to recycle. Even though some umbrellas combine recyclable plastic parts with the umbrella structure to avoid some of the foregoing problems, the plastic parts actually add additional difficulty in classifying the umbrella for recycle.

Furthermore, the design flexibility of conventional umbrella is usually limited to the gore of the umbrella. The central shaft of the umbrella most of the time is not matched with the gore design, which makes the umbrella less appealing to the user.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, a novel umbrella structure is provided herein. The umbrella structure contains a tubular member, a central shaft whose bottom section is sleeved in the tubular member, an upper nest fixedly configured at a top end of the central shaft, a lower nest slidably configured along the central shaft in the other section without the tubular member, a number of collapsible ribs radially arranged around and pinned joined to the upper nest, and a number of stretchers connecting the ribs to the lower nest.

The foregoing components are all made of some plastic materials and the umbrella is therefore handy, light-weighted, and robust to rusting. All plastic components also significantly enhance the operation safety of the umbrella. In addition, the tubular member can be configured to have a matched color to the gore, a superior touch and texture, and a more appealing appearance. At last, the all-plastic umbrella structure is highly recyclable and therefore is much friendlier to environment protection.

The foregoing object and summary provide only a brief introduction to the present invention. To fully appreciate these and other objects of the present invention as well as the invention itself, all of which will become apparent to those skilled in the art, the following detailed description of the invention and the claims should be read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Throughout the specification and drawings identical reference numerals refer to identical or similar parts.

Many other advantages and features of the present invention will become manifest to those versed in the art upon making reference to the detailed description and the accompanying sheets of drawings in which a preferred structural embodiment incorporating the principles of the present invention is shown by way of illustrative example.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing a collapsible umbrella according to an embodiment of the present invention in a collapsed manner.

FIG. 2 is perspective view showing how the central shaft is sleeved in the tubular member of the umbrella structure of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a schematic view showing a non-collapsible umbrella according to another embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The following descriptions are exemplary embodiments only, and are not intended to limit the scope, applicability or configuration of the invention in any way. Rather, the following description provides a convenient illustration for implementing exemplary embodiments of the invention. Various changes to the described embodiments may be made in the function and arrangement of the elements described without departing from the scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims.

As illustrated in FIG. 1, a collapsible umbrella structure according to an embodiment of the present invention contains a central shaft 10, an upper nest 20 fixedly configured at a top end of the central shaft 10, a lower nest 21 slidably configured along the central shaft 10, and about 8 to 10 collapsible ribs 30 radially arranged around and pinned joined to the upper nest 20. Please also see FIG. 2, which also depicts the collapsible umbrella structure of FIG. 1. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, each rib 30 contains a first section 31, a second section 32, and an end section 34 series connected in this order from the upper nest 20 outwards. A number of stretcher 33 are provided, each with its two ends connected to the lower nest 21 and a first section 31 of a rib 30, respectively. When the upper lower nest 21 is slid upward towards the upper nest 20, the stretchers 33 raise the first sections 31 of the ribs 30, which in turn stick out their respective second and end sections 32 and 34. In reverse, when the lower nest 21 is slid downward, the ribs 30 are pulled inward by the stretches 33 and thereby collapsed. For an ordinary, non-collapsible umbrella structure according to another embodiment of the present invention shown in FIG. 3, the ribs are directly raised or retracted by sliding the lower nest 21. The operation of these embodiments is pretty much identical to that of the prior arts and its details are therefore omitted here.

The major characteristics of the present invention lie in the following. The central shaft 10 and all the foregoing components are made of some plastic materials and therefore the umbrella structure is handy, light-weighted, and robust to rusting. Them, the bottom section of the central shaft 10 is sleeved in a tubular member 40 which can have a handle 50 configured at a bottom end of the tubular member 40. The purpose of having the tubular member 40 is mainly for ornamentation. The tubular member 40 can have a matching color to the gore of the umbrella. The tubular member 40 can also be configured to enhance the appearance, touch, and texture of the umbrella, which is difficult to achieve by the conventional central shaft 10 alone.

Additionally, a cap member 60 can be provided on top of the upper nest 20. For collapsible umbrella, the cap member 60 usually has a short cylindrical shape. For non-collapsible umbrella, the cap member 60 usually has an elongated and pointed shape.

While certain novel features of this invention have been shown and described and are pointed out in the annexed claim, it is not intended to be limited to the details above, since it will be understood that various omissions, modifications, substitutions and changes in the forms and details of the device illustrated and in its operation can be made by those skilled in the art without departing in any way from the spirit of the present invention.

Claims

1. An umbrella structure comprising:

a tubular member having a handle at a bottom end;

a central shaft whose bottom section is sleeved in said tubular member, said central shaft being made of a plastic material;

an upper nest fixedly configured at a top end of said central shaft;

a lower nest slidably configured along said central shaft in the other section without said tubular member;

a plurality of ribs radially arranged around and pinned joined to said upper nest; and

a plurality of stretchers, each with the two ends connected to a rib and said lower nest, respectively.

2. The umbrella structure according to claim 1, wherein said ribs are collapsible.

3. The umbrella structure according to claim 1, wherein said ribs are not collapsible.

4. The umbrella structure according to claim 1, further comprising a gore whose one side is attached to said ribs wherein said tubular member has a color matching that of said gore.

5. The umbrella structure according to claim 1, further comprising a cap member configured on top of said upper nest.